Skip to main content

Where do you go once you go to the moon?

Back in 1969, the moon landing gave humanity of its most subliminal moments. Though the vision of man’s first step on the moon has been ingrained in the minds of those who weren’t even around to witness it, not many cameras covered the aftermath. On their return to earth, the astronauts realised that their lives had changed dramatically. Unimaginable, but some of them actually suffered psychological problems and battled depression. The reasons were many but a plausible reason is – where do you go once you go the moon?





One wonders if the Indian team finds itself in the position that the astronauts found themselves in.



Though experts point out to various factors for the team’s failure, a fan doesn’t read much into them. A fan only shares the pain but not the dressing room. Every consecutive defeat, where the margin of defeat is only increasing shows a certain sense of listlessness in the team. Like they turned up and expected the wind to blow in their favour.

Much was spoken about of a committee being set up after India’s very very forgettable tour of England. Many voices were raised and much was promised. As Rahul Dravid stated in his Bradman oration, the ODI series that followed (and won) was without context. Funnily enough, the board didn’t see it that way. It became something to gloat about. A primary fault lies in a board that ensures that its balance sheet is in place but two hoots and a flying fuck about a balanced team. It is a board that fights vociferously for its autonomy but not its accountability.



On April 2, 2011, the country’s gross happiness index which is over dependent on the Indian team’s performance, increased as one may presume, considerably. Sadly, it’s gone downhill ever since. Before the team lifted the cup and gave an entire generation a chance to witness history, pride was relegated to watching youtube videos of the improbable 1983 win. A world cup at home is motivation enough and though albeit a tad unconvincing at times, their campaign gave us one of 2011's most enduring moments. The victory was India’s moon landing. Their no. 1 ranking reinforced the belief that their time had come. Sadly, they hadn't thought of where to go next.

source - http://middlestumpline.blogspot.com/

There are only two paths once supremacy is ascertained. You either reinforce it for years as West Indies and Australia did, or you throw it all away which we have done with great aplomb. Where the team had a chance to go from strength to strength, they have to expend all their energy to going back to where they were a year ago. Whatever the decisions, whatever the promises, the current situation has robbed Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman of a peaceful retirement, something unworthy of their stature. 

And the words from Guns ‘n’ Roses iconic anthem, sweet child ‘o’ mine, ring in all our ears - where do we go now, where do we go now, where do we go?

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

When an Iyer met an Iyengar

If you see my parents, they look like the quintessential arranged marriage couple. After nearly 35 years together, they still take care not to touch each other while posing for a photograph and my mother’s smile dangles precariously between a smile and a grimace. But this image discolours the truth a tad. Some 40 years back, they met at work, fell in love and got married. The talking point of the union being mom’s status as an iyengar and dad’s as an iyer. Simply put, the iyers and the iyengars are two castes of the Brahmin community, each, when given the chance, profess superiority to each other on all counts. If you listen closely, an Iyengar talking about an Iyer will say ‘Iyer a?’ in a condescending tone. And vice versa. Mom tells me that when she told her dad about the marriage, he vowed to stand by her at any cost. Dad never told me what happened, but allow me to hazard a guess. His mother (my grandmother), threatened to go on a fast unto death. My dad threatened to go
13 comments
Read more

Rasam rice

Picture courtesy - Natasha Shiggaon Luthra On some days, Bangalore weather becomes nostalgic. And for some time, everyone is permitted to live in the past. On one such June day, the sun wistfully playing hide and seek and the clouds emitting just enough raindrops for an instagram photo, the weather flirting with winter, the craving for rasam becomes telling. Rasam. Rasam rice. Whichever, doesn’t matter. First, use your fingers to make space in the middle of a heap of rice. Don’t protest when the dollop of ghee gleefully sinks into the rice. The rasam should scald, otherwise the ride isn’t worth it. The flesh on your fingers crawl when you dip them into the rasam, but trust me, keep with it. No good thing has been known to ever come easy. The impatient wait for a few seconds and an insignificant morsel is savoured. Gooseflesh ensues. Slowly but steadily, bigger portions are savoured. to enhance the experience and attain nirvana, combine it with cr
Post a Comment
Read more

#If life were like an instagram feed

I read a quote sometime back that went something like this - "Jealously is how much fun you think they had." At some point in the evolution of social media, quality of life began to be measured by a person's social media feed. And you think that person must be having the time of their life. No dull moment. No faux pas. Every moment so tailor-made to create a thing of beauty. You will be misled into thinking that people were waking up daily to a view so beautiful that it seemed right out of a tourism guide and that every meal was a Michelin rated gourmet style offering. If life were like an instagram feed, the day would begin on a cottage in the hills, a selfie with the morning mist in the background. Breakfast wouldn't be poha, idli, sambhar or anything that bears resemblance to the ordinary or everyday. It will be crepes with chocolate sauce, some orange juice, french toast with a side of bacon and waffles with maple syrup. You could use the filter 'Rise&#
Post a Comment
Read more