Youth in Politics !!

This is a post on Murmu, the name would strike a bell, our Hon’ble President but this is on another Murmu !

Respected Droupadi Murmu is our current President of India.  She was a   teacher and is now the 15th and current President of India since 2022. She won the 2022 presidential election as a candidate of the Bharatiya Janata Party.  She is also the youngest person to occupy the post and the first President born in an independent India. Previously, she served as the 8th Governor of Jharkhand from 2015 to 2021, being the longest serving Governor for that state.   She was a member of the Odisha Legislative Assembly from Rairangpur Assembly constituency from 2000 to 2009, and was Minister of State (Independent Charge), Government of Odisha. She married Shyam Charan Murmu.

This post on Chandrani Murmu !  ~    elected to the Lok Sabha, from Keonjhar, Odisha in the 2019 Indian general election as a member of the Biju Janata Dal. Chandrani Murmu is currently the youngest Indian Member of Parliament in the 17^th Lok Sabha. Murmu won against BJP's Ananta Nayak, who has previously won twice, by a margin of 66,203 votes. She succeeded Sakuntala Laguri to win the election from Keonjhar for the BJD once again. The youngest MP in the 16th Lok Sabha was Dushyant Chautala representing the Indian National Lok Dal from Hisar in Haryana.

Away in the globe, Hanah Lahe is just 24 but she is already a leading voice for change in the former Soviet Baltic state.

Hanah Lahe can’t remember the fall of the iron curtain. Estonia’s youngest MP grew up surfing the web and consuming American television. Just nine years before her birth, it was all so different. When borders reopened after the end of Soviet rule in 1991, Estonians rushed to stare at bananas, enthralled by the arrival of this new, exotic fruit. “People were standing in line sometimes not even to buy, but just to have a look at them. Those who would buy them would not even eat them because it was such a big thing,” says Lahe, 24, recounting a story her grandmother told her. “When a plastic bag from another country that had a big brand name arrived, people would use it all the time.”

Freedom, after half a century of Soviet occupation, held no immediate assurances. Criminal gangs were known to wander around Tallinn in the turbulent years of the early 1990s. Foreign visitors were relatively few and far between. Finnish tourists, allowed to cross the Soviet Union’s sea border, recall seeing ramshackle houses and children in rags roaming the streets of Tallinn.

It has been nearly a year since Lahe, representing the liberal Reform party of the prime minister, Kaja Kallas, was elected an MP, and in that time she has emerged as one of the Baltic country’s most outspoken, energetic and interesting politicians.  She landed her first big victory within months of her election, at just 23, when she led the fight to legislate marriage equality. Estonia went on to become the first ex-Soviet country to legalise same-sex marriage, a groundbreaking piece of legislation that came into effect in January 2024.

Lahe is now challenging other status-quos. The climate crisis remains a muted topic in Estonia, largely thanks to a deep-rooted car-loving culture at odds with Tallinn’s much-lauded free public transportation for residents. Cars remain something of a status symbol for new wealth and Estonia has the EU’s second-highest share of cars older than 20 years. Lahe, a former youth delegate at Cop27 in Egypt and a founder of a circular economy support group in Estonia’s parliament, still sees herself as an activist taking on mainstream attitudes and “big egos”. She refuses to own a car, instead using public transport or walking.

Lahe and like-minded Estonians have their work cut out if the Baltic state is to make real progress on the climate. The country remains an outlier in the EU, with no climate-based laws, though the government – a coalition led by Reform with Estonia 200, a new liberal party, and the Social Democrats as junior partners – is drafting a climate bill that could be pushed through this year. A new car tax is to come into force in 2025, despite public opposition. The reforms could raise an extra €120m a year.

Despite her relative inexperience, Lahe understands the importance of communication. Like Kallas she understands social media, but while the prime minister posts behind-the-scenes footage of her day-to-day duties on Instagram, Lahe goes a step further, using social media as a tool to gain traction on protests.  In June, she set up a temporary garden space outside Estonia’s parliament in protest over the large number of empty “asphalt heat island” spaces devoted to parked cars. Her pop-up went viral and caught the wider public’s attention. The prime minister even dropped by. Fierce climate opponents couldn’t resist having a look.

The other crisis on Lahe’s mind – like all politicians in the Baltics – is Russia’s war on Ukraine. “My generation’s heart aches for Ukraine, not because we lived through a war, but because we have the negative imprint of Russian invasion from our heritage. It matters to everyone who is Estonian how things are going in Ukraine,” says Lahe. She is clear: Ukrainian victory is the only path to securing Europe: “There really isn’t any other option.”

Domestically, battles lie ahead for Lahe, who as a young person in politics feels she has to prove herself “more than a regular politician”, particular since she chooses to go against many of her country’s cultural norms   

Back home in India, Chandrani Murmu was born on 16 June 1993 to Sanjiv Murmu, a government employee and Urbashi Soren, daughter of former MP Hariharan Soren (who won from Keonjhar on behalf of the Congress in 1980 and 1984). Murmu completed her degree in Mechanical Engineering from Siksha 'O' Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, in 2017.  

As the functioning of Parliament shifted to the new building, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji  mentioned the oldest member of Lok Sabha - 93 years old Samajwadi Party MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq - and the youngest - 30 years old Chandrani Murmu of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) - who became an MP at the age of 25.    

Young minds do bring in lot of fresh ideas !

With regards – S Sampathkumar
29.2.2024 

Ilamai Kalangal - ஈரமான ரோஜாவே !!

கண்ணீரில் மூழ்காது  காற்றுள்ள பந்து என்ற ஒரு அரும்பெரும் தத்துவத்தை ஒரு கவிஞர் தந்தார் - நான் சொல்வது தொட்டியில் பூக்காது அழகான ரோஜா !! – this rose is pictured inside a flower pot !!

 

நீங்கள் நிறைய சினிமா பார்ப்பவரா ?  - சசிகலா என்ற கதாநாயகியை நினைவு உள்ளதா ?  

Madhyamavati (madhyamāvati) is a rāga in Carnatic music,  audava rāga ( meaning pentatonic scale), as it does not have all the seven musical notes (swaras).   The equivalent of Madhyamavati in Hindustani music is Madhumad Sarang.   It is considered a very auspicious rāgam and every Carnatic music concert ends with either a song in Madhyamavati or the ending of the last song is sung in this rāgam 

 

ஈரமான ரோஜாவே என்னை பார்த்து மூடாதே

கண்ணில் என்ன சோகம் போதும் ஏங்காதே

தண்ணீரில் மூழ்காது காற்றுள்ள பந்து

என்னோடு நீ பாடிவா,   சிந்து!!

 

This  melody "Eeramana Rojave" is set in the Carnatic raga   Madhyamavati! (says wikipeida) 

இந்த அற்புதமான பாடல் இசைஞானி இளையராஜா இசையில் யேசுதாசின் குரலில் பற்பல தடவை விரும்பி கேட்கப்பட்ட, கேட்கப்படும் பாடல்.  படம் 1983ல் வெளிவந்த இளமை காலங்கள் -  இத்திரைப்படத்தில் மோகன், சசிகலா மற்றும் சுகுமாரி ஆகியோர் முக்கிய கதாபாத்திரங்களில் நடித்திருந்தனர்.

 

சசிகலா என்று தமிழில் அறியப்பட்ட சாசி கவுர் மல்கோத்ரா(Shashi Kaur Malhotra) இந்த படத்தில் அறிமுகமாகி சுமார் 33 தமிழ் திரைப்படங்களில் நடித்தார். இரச்சணி என்ற பெயரில் தெலுங்கு திரைப்பட உலகில் அறியப்பட்டார். 

Certainly not useful info – but may be interesting !

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
29.2.2024 

Speed - Cutting Onions !!

 

Onions make people cry !!  When you cut onions – tears would come .. .. one good tip is : Cut them underwater

A person asked immediately ! :  then how would we breathe !!:  https://youtu.be/0lXfRd5octk

Cow & Calf - Election Symbols

India is a democracy  ~ the electoral process in such a large country of crores of people is difficult to handle.  As Election dates are announced, each party tries to reach out to voters with their symbols painted everywhere !! 

A picture of a Cow and a calf, not sure of their relationship taken sometime back at Triplicane .. .. and something on election symbol, remember Congress had ‘Pasuvum Kanrum’ as its election symbol !!

 

Decades ago, Independent India elected those who would rule them. India’s first elections and the promise was for universal adult franchise, unqualified by considerations of literacy. Today that is a part of democracy that we take for granted, but it was far from being that way before India showed it was possible over those few months in 1951-52 when those first elections took place. 

However, this was not to be the first election to take place across the subcontinent. The British had conducted polls in 1920 as part of the limited democracy promised by the Montagu-Chelmsford reforms that were made concrete in the Government of India Act, 1919. This provided for a Central Legislature made up of both nominated and elected members in different communal categories. But the Act limited the electorate to men only and only those who owned land or paid taxes of a certain value. 

Would be hard to believe but Srilanka influenced the way of Indian elections.  The information on elections in Ceylon was provided by Sir Bernard Bourdillon, the Colonial Secretary of Ceylon, who must count as an important influencer of Indian elections. Bourdillon, an ICS official with progressive views, who would go on to become an admired Governor of Nigeria, had overseen the creation of a system where any Ceylonese who wished to vote simply had to register (no voting list was created, a key difference with the later Indian system) and then could vote in the symbol system. 

In July 1951 the EC called meetings with parties to decide on symbols, and at once squabbles broke out. On July 2nd, the Times of India reported how at the first meeting the Congress, Socialist, Communist and Peasants & Workers Parties all laid claim to the plough symbol. The Socialists were particularly annoyed why “the Congress which has always been represented by a ‘charkha’ today chose to have the plough…” The EC found itself having to decide on symbol allotment, something that was to become a constant role for it. 

The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968 empowers the Election Commission to recognise political parties and allot symbols. An electoral or election symbol is a standardized symbol allocated to a political party. The symbols  were introduced to facilitate voting by illiterate people, who can’t read the name of the party while casting their votes. 

Last year in Oct, Apex Court  refused to entertain a petition filed by the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) party in Telangana, challenging the allotment of election symbols to two other parties.  BRS argued that the symbols of ‘road roller’ and ‘chapatti roller’, which were allotted to a ‘Yuga Thulasi Party’ and ‘Alliance of Democratic Reforms Party’ respectively, looked similar to BRS’s symbol of a car. This might confuse the voters during elections, it said. However, the SC declined the petition, saying voters were intelligent enough to differentiate between the symbols. 

Not many would know that the Election Commission in 1971 had allotted the symbol of a cow and calf to the Congress party then led by Indira Gandhi. The charge against Gandhi, argued in court by Shanti Bhushan, Raj Narain’s counsel, was that she was invoking Hindu sentiment by using the cow and calf symbol. To understand better, the Congress that ruled after Independence is not the same party that Gandhi headed and fought freedom struggle.  …. And it has seen many splits, everytime when the dynasty is questioned. 

After the Congress split in 1969, the faction led by Indira Gandhi took  a conscious turn towards socialism. Interestingly, the new symbol of the breakaway faction led by Gandhi was that of a cow suckling its calf.  In 1969, Congress again faced internal conflicts. After the death of Nehru and Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi was Prime Minister. She decided to break out and form a new party. With majority of the Congress party members in support of her in the new party which was named Congress (Requisitionists), the other Congress came to be called Congress (Organisation).  The party’s symbol was bullocks – when it was gone, Ms Indira Gandhi turned to cow. Cries of hurting religious sentiments were raised soon after the symbol was allotted and it prompted then Chief Election Commissioner S P Sen Varma later to record in an official account on the elections that it was “difficult to accept the view that cow represents Hindu religion”. Post Emergency, Indira’s leadership once again came to be questioned within the party and she decided to split the party again; her faction came to be called Congress (Indira).  This time, EC gave the party  three choices – an elephant, a bicycle and an open palm.  With the leader away in AP, Buta Singh and others chose Hand – open palm as   easily recognisable.  

What was buried deep was the fact that a similar symbol had been sought by the Akhil Bharatiya Ram Rajya Parishad in the 1952 elections but was refused by the Election Commission on the ground that it was a religious symbol.  The Commission specifically mentioned the cow as one of the objects having a religious association. The same Commission which had refused to allot the symbol of a cow to the Parishad in 1952 on the ground that it was a religious symbol allotted it to the ruling Congress party.’  .. ..and in case, you want to read some more history, the Congress party that was founded in Dec 1885,  at Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit College in Bombay, by AO Hume and the party symbol during Jawaharlal Nehru era was   two bullocks carrying a yoke. 

In neighbouring Pakistan, elections were hard fought with parties  campaigning, plastering walls with propaganda posters. But the symbol of a popular party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), was to be missing, thanks to an unprecedented crackdown on the PTI and its jailed leader, former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Khan’s party was  barred from using the party symbol – and it was bat !!

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
28.2.2024
  

Remembering that genius Sujatha !

Ever heard of - Traité de mécanique celeste ? – for sure I would not have cared to know what it is about but for Sujatha Q & A in Karrathum Perrathum !! Laplace is regarded as one of the greatest scientists of all time .. .. and there was one person who  made us read about such great people !!

If I were to visualize a Genius, it would only represent the image of Sujatha, the versatile Tamil writer,  the great learned person who introduced sci-fi to tamil readers.  Tamil koorum nallulugam is still reading and appreciating his very many thoughts in various forms that he left behind for the Tamil readers.  His Q & A on Science questions in magazines like Junior Vikatan enlightened the readers making them understand the greatness of Science and more.   Srirangam Rangarajan, aka Sujata was  born at Thiruvallikkeni.  

28/02/2008  did not dawn well .. .. .. morning it was shocking to read the news of passing away of a person whom I liked most – Sujatha (Srirangam Rangarajan)

There are days when something hurts you sentimentally.  It was a day that started in a very melancholic mood. The news that a great genius, a man most reverred by me,  one who was loved by vast multitude of tamils interested in reading – short stories, novels, fiction, question & answers, religion – to capitulate, more so, the man who made us read more ! – the man  who authored of over 100 novels, 250 short stories, ten books on science, ten stage plays, and a slim volume of poems, ceased to exist ! 

Some people felt that his stories had an overdose of science. What Sujatha was trying to do was to kindle the scientific temparament and increase the awareness. Apart from being an author, he extended his writing skills and expertise on science to movies. The first of his were Gayathiri and Priya. In Priya his fictional character Ganesh comes to the screen done by superstar Rajinikanth but without vasanth (because the actor who was supposed to play vasanth did not get passport). He was also a co-producer for the banner MediaDreams which went on to produce critically acclaimed bio-pic, Bharathi, of the great Tamil poet Bhaarathiyaar. He was working on Shankar's Robot before passing away on Feb 27, 2008.   

The law of gravitation is often considered greatest of Newton’s achievements, in reality, less worthy of than his foundation for dynamics. Its chief merit lies in the clear perception of application of the law to the smallest articles of matter. By Newton’s own admission, the law of inverse squares as applicable to such masses was within the reach of any mathematician years earlier.   

If one were asked to name the two most important works in the progress of mathematics and physics, the answer would undoubtedly be, the Principia of Newton and the Mécanique Céleste of Laplace. In their historical and philosophical aspects these works easily outrank all others, and furnish thus the standard by which all others must be measured. The distinguishing feature of the Principia is its clear and exhaustive enunciation of fundamental principles. The Mécanique Céleste, on the other hand, is conspicuous for the development of principles and for the profound generality of its methods. The Principia gives the plans and specifications of the foundations; the Mécanique Céleste affords the key to the vast and complex superstructure.  

Traité de mécanique céleste (transl. "Treatise of celestial mechanics") is a five-volume treatise on celestial mechanics written by Pierre-Simon Laplace and published from 1798 to 1825.  In 1842, the government of Louis Philippe gave a grant of 40,000 francs for a 7-volume national edition of the Oeuvres de Laplace.    

Newton laid the foundations of Celestial Mechanics, at the close of the seventeenth century, by the discovery of the principle of universal gravitation. Even in his own hands, this discovery led to important consequences, but it  required a century and a half, and a regular succession of intellects the most powerful, to fill up the outline sketched by him. Of these, Laplace himself was the last, and, perhaps after Newton, the greatest; and the task commenced in the Principia of the former, is completed in the Mécanique Céleste of the latter. In this last named work, the illustrious author has proposed to himself his object, to unite all the theories scattered throughout the various channels of publication, employed by his predecessors, to reduce them to one common method, and present them all in the same point of view.  

Pierre-Simon, Marquis de Laplace (1749-1827)  was a French scholar and polymath whose work was important to the development of engineering, mathematics, statistics, physics, astronomy, and philosophy. He summarized and extended the work of his predecessors in his five-volume Mécanique celeste.  This work translated the geometric study of classical mechanics to one based on calculus, opening up a broader range of problems. In statistics, the Bayesian interpretation of probability was developed mainly by Laplace.  The Laplacian differential operator, widely used in mathematics, is also named after him. He restated and developed the nebular hypothesis of the origin of the Solar System and was one of the first scientists to suggest an idea similar to that of a black hole, with Stephen Hawking stating that "Laplace essentially predicted the existence of black holes".       

   

Laplace is regarded as one of the greatest scientists of all time. Sometimes referred to as the French Newton or Newton of France, he has been described as possessing a phenomenal natural mathematical faculty superior to that of almost all of his contemporaries. He was Napoleon's examiner when Napoleon graduated from the École Militaire in Paris in 1785. Laplace became a count of the Empire in 1806 and was named a marquis in 1817, after the Bourbon Restoration. 

My all time favourite is story written by Sujatha ~  En Iniya Iyanthira (என் இனிய இயந்திரா) the plot opens up  at an era  where India is ruled by a dictator called Jeeva. In his rule, the population is kept under control by killing elderly people when they cross the prescribed age limit. Everyone is allotted a unique name with two letters by Government. Every Citizen of the country must strictly adhere to the rules of Jeeva and admire, adore him. The country is in total control of Jeeva's Robots. People are identified only with their social security numbers and all the details are fed and controlled by Master Computer at Capital City. On a New Year eve, Nila, a homemaker is very delighted for having the Government's permission letter to have a boy baby from Population Control Board. She intimates the news to her husband Sibi.   At this juncture Sibi vanishes and pet Jeeno, the super intelligent robot dog steps in her life.  The story evolves on the plot to throw the dictator and the intelligence of pet dog Jeano ! 

~ that with some alterations needed for movie and for hero Rajnikant was Shankar directed ‘Enthiran’ – the real hero being mastermind Sujatha and more impressive were the acts of Jeeno.  In a song, you will hear reference to Isaac Asimov, who thought beyond his time on robotics.  I, Robot is a collection of science fiction short stories by American writer Isaac Asimov.

 

Everything about Sujatha is Science, knowledge, learning and inspiration.  He is no more but every now and then he has made think of him, and there lies his genius

 

An avid fan of genius writer Sujatha
Srinivasan Sampathkumar
28.2.2o24 

Birds combo : குயில் பாட்டு ஓ வந்ததென்ன

Combo means a bunch or a collection.  In restaurants,  a combo meal  consists of beverage and food combined. In some garment shops they would offer a pant bit and shirt bit  .. .. this is unusual combo – Parrots and Cuckoo !!

 

இசைஞானி இளையராஜா இன்னிசையில் பட்டி தொட்டியெல்லாம் ஒலித்த பிரபலமான பாடல் - என் ராசாவின் மனசிலே என்ற படத்தில் இருந்து ! 

The Cuckoo is a dove-sized bird with a blue-grey back, head and chest, and stripey black and white belly. Its sleek body, long tail and pointed wings gives it an appearance not unlike Kestrels or Sparrowhawks. Cuckoos are summer visitors and known for being brood parasites. This means that, instead of building their own nest, the females lay their eggs in other birds’ nests, especially Meadow Pipits, Dunnocks and Reed Warblers. 

குயில் பறவை தன் முட்டைகளை மற்ற பறவைகளின் கூட்டில் இடும், காக்கை போன்ற பறவை அதை அறியாமல் அடை காக்கவும் என சிறு வயதில் படித்துள்ளோம். 

Mayandi was a brave and strong man who was respected by the villagers. He loves his  cousin Solaiyamma and wishes to marry her.   Though they have an arrangd marriage, Solaiyamma is afraid of him  and ..  En Rasavin Manasile released in 1991    directed by Kasthuri Raja in his directorial debut starred Rajkiran (who also produced) and Meena.   The film had a silver jubilee run and gave a break to Rajkiran and Meena. The film was later remade in Telugu as Moratodu Naa Mogudu (1992) with Meena reprising her role, and in Sinhala as Ayadimi Sama (1999). 

Cuckoos might be the ultimate avian con artists, laying lookalike eggs in the nests of other birds to avoid raising their own young, but researchers say at least one potential victim is remarkably good at rumbling the fraud.   Scientists studying the African cuckoo have revealed that while the birds are able to produce almost identical-looking eggs to those of the fork-tailed drongo, the latter is likely to reject an impostor egg about 94% of the time. 

The team behind the work say that is because drongo eggs can vary greatly in appearance, ranging from unmarked to speckled, blotched, or reddish eggs. While cuckoos can produce an almost identical-looking collection, for both species individual females can only produce eggs with one type of appearance. Crucially, female cuckoos do not target drongo nests containing similar-looking eggs to their own. 

A cuckoo might drop a perfectly drongo-looking blotched egg into a clutch of speckled drongo eggs.  Even though there is near-perfect mimicry, because there is so much variability in [egg appearance], drongos seem to have the upper hand,  and would reject those eggs which are not theirs !!  

குயில் பாட்டு ஓ வந்ததென்ன இளமானே ....

அதை கேட்டு ஓ செல்வதெங்கே மனம்தானே ....

இன்று வந்த இன்பம் என்னவோ

அது கண்டு கண்டு அன்பு பொங்கவோ

 
Interesting !
 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
27.2.2024 

குருகு - Heron landing

 

A heron about to land on water ! - குருகு என்ற தமிழ்ச் சொல்லுக்கு நாரை, கோழி, சங்கு என்ற பல பொருளுண்டு.

 

The cocoi heron (Ardea cocoi) is a species of long-legged wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae.  It has predominantly pale grey plumage with a darker grey crest. A carnivore, it hunts fish and crustaceans in shallow water.

Mind over matter ! - மியாவ் மியாவ் பூனைக்குட்டி !

The members of this family are built for hunting. They stalk, chase, and pounce on their prey. Unlike the claws found in most carnivores, the claws of species in the cat family are retractable and can be drawn into their paws. This protects their sharp claws from wearing down.  They have sharp canine teeth that help them kill their prey. Most species in this family sever the spinal cord of their prey with their canines. Species in this family have rounded heads and short muzzles. They have excellent eyesight and hearing and a good sense of smell. 

Life lessons on a Sunday  !  This Cat got a WA forward that Cat and Tiger belongs to the same family.  From that moment on, its mind is imbued with thinking that it can roar and everyone around will be afraid !!

 

மதுரை சடகோபன் ________  என்ற பெயர் கொண்ட குழந்தை குரலில் சிறப்பாக பாடிய இந்த பாடகி (24.2.1932) பிறந்தார் !!   1961ல் வெளிவந்த 'குமுதம்' திரைப்படம் நன்றாக ஓடியது, இவருக்கும் பெயர் கொடுத்தது.   ஏ. சுப்பாராவ் இயக்கத்தில் வெளிவந்த இத்திரைப்படத்தில் எஸ். எஸ். ராஜேந்திரன், விஜயகுமாரி மற்றும் பலரும் நடித்திருந்தனர். இப்படத்திற்கு கே. வி. மகாதேவன் இசையமைத்திருந்தார். 

இப்படம் தெலுங்கில் மஞ்சி மனசுலு (1962) மலையாளத்தில் சுசீலா (1963), இந்தியில் பூஜா கி பூல் (1964) என்ற பெயர்களில் மறு ஆக்கம் செய்யபட்டன.  சீர்காழி கோவிந்தராஜன்       பாடிய கண்ணதாசன் வரிகள் - கல்லிலே கலைவண்ணம் கண்டான் - மிக பிரபலமான ஒரு பாடல். 

Feline, (family Felidae), any of 37 cat species that among others include the cheetah, puma, jaguar, leopard, lion, lynx, tiger, and domestic cat. 

ஆரம்பத்தில் குறிப்பிடப்பட்ட பாடகி - ராஜேஸ்வரி.  எம். எஸ். இராஜேஸ்வரி (24.2.21932 - 25.4.2018) பிரபல  தமிழ்த் திரைப்படப் பின்னணிப் பாடகி. சுண்டலிக்கும் சுண்டலிக்கும் கல்யாணமாம் (கைதி கண்ணாயிரம்), சிட்டுக் குருவி சிட்டுக்குருவி சேதி தெரியுமா (டவுன் பஸ்) போன்ற பல குழந்தை குரல் பாடல்கள் இன்றும் விரும்பி கேட்கப்படுகின்றன.

 

மியாவ் மியாவ் பூனைக்குட்டி  !  வீட்டை சுத்தும் பூனைக்குட்டி

அத்தான் மனது வெல்லக்கட்டி !!  அவர் அழகை சொல்லடி செல்லக்குட்டி

 

குமுதம் திரையில் மருதகாசி அவர்களுக்கே உரித்தான யதார்த்த நடையில் எழுதிய ஒரு பாடல் . பாடல்  புது மணப்பெண் மனக்களிப்போடு பாடுவது போல் அமைந்த பாடல் .  சிறுவர் சிறுமியர்கள்தாம் அதிகம் பாடுவார்கள் அன்று.. அழகிய பூனைக்குட்டி ஒன்றைக் கையில் வைத்துக் கொண்டு , பார்வையற்ற நிலையில் சௌகார் ஜானகி அவர்கள் தனது கணவரது அழகையும் , வசீகரத்தையும் உணர்வுகளால் புரிந்து பாடுவதுபோல் வடிவமைக்கப்பட்டது. 

Be a Cat, be a Tiger – one can be happy, trouble starts only when we imagine what we are not !  - Sunday, be relaxed, savour your breakfast and don’t think much ! life anyway would start afresh on Monday morning (ஆபீஸ் போகணுமே!!)

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
25.2.2024 

Tearful homage to friend - Shankar Ramakrishna Iyer

There are days that make you very sad !!  ~  Triplicane would ever miss this tall lovable person always seen in pure white shirt and a neat white dhoti !! 

 

Remember seeing him from School days, he lived in TP Koil lane and later moved to Venkatrangam Street, son of a freedom fighter, he had a husky voice, good sense of humour, very good heart, smiling face and an impressive moustache ! 

“If nothing saves us from death, at least love should save us from life” 

.. ..   death also travels through the world dressed up as a sweeping broom,

It licks the ground as it looks for bodies,

Death is in the broom,

It is the tongue of death looking for the dead,

It is the needle of death looking for the thread.  -  Pablo Neruda

 

போட்டோ பிடிக்கறதுன்னா - காமெராவை கையில் தூக்கி தோராயமாக க்ளிக் பண்ணறதுன்னு நினைத்தீர்களா !!  ~  is  what I wrote posting a photo of him when he made a comeback recently but alas 59, he is gone.  He was ailing but we all hoped and prayed that he would recover, make a comeback, telling more jokes and keeping everyone happy.  Alas, did not happen. 

There is so much of Science, technology added with concentration and passion behind this. Lighting, angle, clarity and many more matters and some photographers literally are down to earth in trying to capture in the way they need..  For decade + we have stood shoulder to shoulder vying to capture Emperuman.  He for sure took tens of thousands of photos.  Remember him taking photos with Nokia 48MP phone, then moved to Canon DSLR – standing tall. 

Shankar would stand  tall above most persons -  clad in white and white., will lift and keep the Camera eyelid closer, then right arm will go up in circular motion – imagine an archer holding the Bow, pulling the strings and  releasing an arrow.  That was Shankar Ramakrishnan style of photographing ! 

Gone today ! – young – in his late 50s – gone is that smile and the heart that mingled with us all.  In late 1980s he worked in Madras Stock Exchange, got married at Thirumala, was one of the very early Computer literates – expert in photo processing had the large heart to take out beautiful prints of his Perumal photos and distribute them to many friends.  There have been calendars carrying his (out of) focus, as he would name some of his photos.  He had a stint in Middle East and Ceylon too – nothing of them are of relevance as he left for heavenly abode young leaving behind his beloved wife  Mrs Vidhya Shankar.

 

People coming to Sri Parthasarathi Thirukkovil will miss him,  his beautiful photos with tagline ‘Vishnumayam’ and videos  (photo above taken by TV Venkatesh in2014) 

Very sorry Shankar – Sad, we pay tearful homage to you this evening. Obsequies at his flat New no. 159/old 75, Flat no. 19, Vivekananda Apartments, Venkatrangam Street, near MOP Vaishnav School, opp to Chennai dental clinic / erstwhile Vasantha bungalow, Triplicane Chennai 600 005 

With deep sorrow – your friend
S. Sampathkumar
23.2.2024 

Black & White King Fisher

This morning spent sometime watching birds in a waterbody near Foreshore Estate. This one was different – it was a King Fisher but have seen them mostly having plumage of exotic cyan, blue, orange tinge ! – this had black & white predominantly.  It was chased by a Crow, it was able to fly at the same place like a Hummingbird and literally nose-dive straight from a height. 

Google search reveals it to be “Pied Kingfisher -  (Ceryle rudis)’,  a species of water kingfisher widely distributed across Africa and Asia. Originally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, it has five recognised subspecies. Its black and white plumage and crest, as well as its habit of hovering over clear lakes and rivers before diving for fish, make it distinctive. Males have a double band across the breast, while females have a single broken breast band. They are usually found in pairs or small family groups. When perched, they often bob their head and flick up their tail.  

The pied kingfisher was one of the many bird species originally described by Linnaeus in the landmark 1758 10th edition of his Systema Naturae, who noted that it lived in Persia and Egypt. He named it Alcedo rudis. The German naturalist Friedrich Boie erected the genus Ceryle in 1828.  The name is from classical Greek kērulos, an unidentified and probably mythical bird mentioned by Aristotle and other authors. The specific epithet rudis is Latin for "wild" or "rude".  

In 1996, Kingfisher sponsored The West Indies Cricket team which gave birth to the iconic jingle “Ooh La Lala Le O” which was identified  with the King of Good Times. The association with cricket deepened with iconic cricketers such as Sourav Ganguly, Ajay Jadeja, Andrew Flintoff and Michael  Vaughan bringing further star value to the brand as the official ambassadors. Kingfisher was also the official Good Times Partner of seven out of the eight IPL teams.  .. 

 

There was an airline too ! – yet some of you may think of only its calendars.
 
With regards – S. Sampathkumar
22.2.2024

குரங்கு கையில் பூமாலை

Monkeys are Omnivores – they eat small prey as also plant roots, fruits and .. .. flowers too – here is a monkey holding Samanthi (Marigold) and eating too !!

 

குரங்கு கையில் பூமாலை தெரியும் !  குரங்கு சாமந்தி பூவை வைத்துக்கொண்டு என்ன செய்யும் !  

மாதவா, கருத்து சொன்னா திட்டறாங்க !  வாயை மூடிக்கொண்டு இருப்போம் என முயற்சிக்கிறதோ !! 

Zebra ! - வரி என்றவுடன் !?!?

In Euclidean geometry, the intersection of a line and a line can be the empty set, a point, or another line. Distinguishing these cases and finding the intersection have uses, for example, in computer graphics, motion planning, and collision detection. 

வரி என்றவுடன் - இந்த மாதம் கட்ட வேண்டிய வருமான வரி பற்றி நினைத்தால், நீங்கள் பணக்காரர் !; வரி, கிஸ்தி - யாரிடம் கேட்கிறாய் என சிவாஜி கணேசன் (கட்டபொம்மன்) மனதில் தோன்றினால் - நீங்கள் நேற்று இரவு பார்த்த சினிமா ! - கோடுகள் ஞாபகம் வந்தால், நீங்கள் படிப்பாளி அல்லது படைப்பாளி !  இவை தவிர உங்களுக்கு வரிக்குதிரையும் ஞாபகம் வரலாம் !  

வரி (tax) என்பது, அரசோ அதுபோன்ற அமைப்புக்களோ, தனி நபர் அல்லது நிறுவணங்களிடமிருந்து பெறும் நிதி அளவீடு   குழந்தைப் பருவத்தில்,  முதல் சவால் - பென்சிலினால் ஒரு நேர் கோடு வரைதல் !    சீரற்ற கோடுகளை வரைவதில் தொடங்கி சிறந்தவர்கள் மட்டுமே முழுமையான வட்டத்தை வரைய வல்லர்.    

Data management expert Zebra Technologies (NASDAQ: ZBRA) reported robust fourth-quarter results, inspiring several bullish analyst reports. Among them, Baird analyst Richard Eastman raised his price target for Zebra from $292 to $312 per share, based on a compelling analysis.  Eastman explained his reiterated "outperform" rating on Zebra's stock with an insightful analysis of its most important target market. The retail sector was the first to head into the economic downturn of 2021 and 2022, and the same industry appears headed for a robust recovery.  

With stripes across the body, they look like having a barcode and at a glance all in the herd might look alike – they say that their stripe patterns are as distinctive as fingerprints are in man. Scientists can identify individual zebras by comparing patterns, stripe widths, colour and scars but to us they would look alike apart from their size – big and small.  In some ways more majestic than  the Horse, Zebra is a specie of African equids, live in the wild and have never been domesticated.  There are three living species: Grévy's zebra (Equus grevyi), the plains zebra (E. quagga), and the mountain zebra (E. zebra). Zebras share the genus Equus with horses and asses, the three groups being the only living members of the family Equidae.  

அசப்பில்குதிரை போல இருந்தாலும் வரிக்குதிரையின் வரிகள் பிரசித்தம். குதிரை, வரிக்குதிரை, கழுதை முதலியவை ஒரே குடும்பத்தைச் சார்ந்த விலங்குகள்தான்.  பல வகை வரிக்குதிரைகளின் அடிவயிற்றுப்பகுதியில் வரிகள் இல்லாமல் கொஞ்சமாய் வெள்ளைப் பகுதி காணப்படுகிறது. அதனால், வெள்ளைத் தோலில் கறுப்பு வரிகள் உள்ளன என்றுதான் பல காலமாய் புரிந்து வைத்திருந்தனர். ஆனால், கருவளர்ச்சியியல் (embryology) ஆய்வுகளைச் செய்துபார்த்தபோது, உள்ளபடியே கறுப்புத் தோலில் ஏற்படும் வெள்ளை நிறங்கள் தாம் வரிகள் என்பது தெளிவாகியுள்ளது.  

As a zebra grazes, it uses its sharper front teeth to bite the grass, and then uses its duller back teeth to crush and grind. A zebra's teeth keep growing for its entire life, because constant grazing and chewing wears them down.  Zebras are constantly on the move to find fresh grass and water. In Africa,  they gather in huge herds of thousands as they migrate to better feeding grounds. They often travel in mixed herds with other grazers and browsers, such as wildebeest.  

Zebras groom one another. If you see two zebras standing close to each other and it looks like they're biting each other, don't worry. They're pulling loose hairs off each other as they groom. Grooming also feels good to a zebra—it's like having an itch scratched.

 

International Zebra Day is observed every year on January 31  .. this Zebra was photographed by me at Bannerghatta zoo, Bengaluru.

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
19.2.2024 

Yashasvi Jaiswal second double ton !!

How much of Cricket do you follow ! – those days a few hundreds of wise people would come to watch Palayampatti Shield matches, Hindu trophy and games of every kind !!  .. .. not many present day followers would know or remember CB Selvakumar, who played for RBI, was a popular Six hitter and who made a double century in the Hindu trophy format !!!   

Back in Oct 2019, a 17 year old made ripples hitting a List A double century finishing at 203 in 154 balls against Jharkhand in Vijay Hazare trophy, today the whole World is talking about him !!   

His achievement is all the more laudable given the face of adversity ! ~ media reports suggest that back in 2012, an innocent 11-year-old boy arrived in Mumbai with a dream of playing cricket for the country. He lived in a tent with no toilet facilities, sold panipuri to sustain himself and would go to sleep without eating for days on. He rose to play U19 and is a famous six hitter now  

Cricket records are meant to broken.  In olden days, a tour to Caribbean islands was the toughest one.  In 1971 India had glory.   In Feb 1971, India played their 1^st test at Sabina Park.    After the first day was washed out India, thanks mainly to Dileep Sardesai's double-hundred, amassed 387, and then the Indian spinners skittled the West Indies for 217, a deficit of 170. They were asked to follow-on, but comfortably batted out time for a draw. Sardesai amassed  642 runs, with two single hundreds and a double, yet was outsmarted !  .. Abid Ali & Jayanti lal were the openers, while Abid Ali opened the bowling with Eknath Solkar.  Prasanna and Venkatraghaven – the two offies played together.  In the next match, a legend debuted opening alongside Ashok Mankad !!   

The Indian touring party was announced by the BCCI on 13 January 1971. The selectors named Ajit Wadekar the Captain, dropping Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi and Chandu Borde, the latter due to lack of form and fitness. S. Venkataraghavan was the vice-captain. Notable exclusions were  spinner BS Chandrasekhar, flamboyant  Farokh Engineer and Rusi Surti, the latter two owing to a ruling that they must have played during the season's Ranji Trophy competition. Keki Tarapore was the tour manager and Subhash Gupte, the liaison officer.  

That Series was all about little Master Sunil Manohar Gavaskar.  He missed the 1st Test due to an injured finger. In the 2^nd, the 21-year-old announced himself with scores of 65 and 67 not out as India won by 7 wickets to lead the series 1-0 with 3 games to go.  In the next game, he made his 1st Test 100; finishing with 116 and 64 not out to help India draw the game.   In the next match, he fell for 1 in the 1st innings, his only score below 50 in the entire series. He  made up for it with 117 not out to make sure India saved the game and with one match left, India were still 1-0 up.  In the final test, he made 124 in the 1st innings and followed it up with 220 in the 2nd innings and West Indies barely managed to draw the game and India won the series 1-0, their 1st Test series victory over West Indies and that too in their own den. Gavaskar became the 2nd Indian to hit a 100 in each innings of a Test, something he would do on 2 more occasions.   

The legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar achieved plenty of milestones during his 16 years long Test career.  We thought that it was the pinnacle of glory .. .. but players keep coming up, we have seen the likes of Virender SEhwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli to name a few .. .. and is Yashasvi Jaiswal right up there is the Q !?!  

Today at Rajkot, phenomenal Yashasvi Jaiswal beat England bowlers to submission as the India opener notched up his second successive double century on Day 4 of the third Test in Rajkot on Sunday. Going hammer and tongs against the England bowlers, dazzling Jaiswal hammered his second double ton of the series – following  209 in Visakhapatnam in the second Test.  

Remember that he made his century yesterday -  when in   90s it  seemed to be a battle between his intent and execution. Mark Wood went with a bumper barrage and Jaiswal first tried to sell him a dummy by acting as if he was moving to leg but sliding back to position. Wood kept his poise and fired it at his throat and Jaiswal hopped to keep it down. Two more bouncers were kept out before he backed away for real outside leg and weakly cut to point.  On 103, his back began to seize up and he slowly sank at the non-striker’s end after calling for medical attention. As he lay on his tummy, the physio worked vigorously on the lower back and stretched his left leg. Next over, he walked off the field.  

Today he returned fresh with renewed vigour and played a splendid innings. With an easy single off a Joe Root delivery, Jaiswal got to his double ton and leapt in joy as the Indian dressing room and the fans in the stands applauded his stupendous knock.  Jaiswal is now also the sixth Indian after MAK Pataudi (203*), Dilip Sardesai (200*), Sunil Gavaskar (220 and 221), VVS Laxman (281) and Wasim Jaffer (212) to score a double hundred in second innings for India in the traditional format. Jaiswal finished on an unbeaten 214 as India declared their second innings at 430 for 4, setting England a target of 557 in the second session on the penultimate day.  

It was not only the double ton but the manner of crazy hitting – it looked like IPL.  Already 48 sixers have been hit in this Series -   28 sixes in this match breaking  the record for most sixes in a match, going past their 27 sixes in the Vizag Test in the same series in 2018-19.  

Three decades ago, a young man from Mumbai Vinod Kambli  took Test cricket by storm with two double-centuries in a row. Yashasvi Jaiswal, another young man from Mumbai, has now scored two double-centuries.  He is also the third-youngest man to two double-centuries in Tests, behind Vinod Kambli and Don Bradman.  Three Indians have scored two double tons in a Series – Vinod Kambli, Virat Kohli and Jaiswal.  

In this innings Jaiswal hit 12 sixers.    Immediately after reaching the double-century, he celebrated it back-to-back sixes off Joe Root. With that he leveled Wasim Akram's 12 sixes in his 257 against Zimbabwe back in 1996 

While you would read Statistics, personal milestones and acclaims today all over, here are some moot points to ponder too,

·        Without  belittling the innings,  this attack perhaps was weak – James Anderson bowled 13, Mark Wood 10, Hartley 23 and Rehan 25 !  - the max (27) were bowled by Joe Root. !!

·        Yesterday many went gaga over the run out blaming Jadeja stating Sarfraz missed out a certain 100 – gentlemen, still there were 38 to be made ! and run outs do happen in Cricket.  Every batsman would play for individual landmarks though one would keep saying that Team interest is above individual.  Today with Jaiswal within a scoring shot to his double, Sarfraz cut Rehan and ran one – Jaiswal turned back was not intent on second,  there was ugly animated gestures from the debutant at a Senior colleague for not running the second ! – was he intent to make his 50 before the declaration ?    Rohit Sharma waited till Jaiswal made 200 and delayed it by a couple of overs thereafter.

·        People call him cool nice guy – when he was at the helm with Greg Chappell as coach he too chopped some, picked some !  and in Multan Test when the result was not in jeopardy, he declared the innings with a Star batsman stranded at 194 ! – he could have declared when the batsman was around 175 or sent him a note to reach landmark in couple of overs.  He had the mind to deny double ton !!   

Yashasvi Jaiswal is playing his seventh match and 12th innings in a career that began last year with a debut knock of 171 in the West Indies.  His attitude and stroke play have been exceptional.  Best wishes to him to become a dependent consistent player and score 10000 runs in Test Cricket

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
19.2.2024.