Monday, November 9, 2009

Kissa Thappad Ka....



Andre Agassi : Love All, Tell All!!

I am astonished by Andre Agassi’s drug abuse revelations in his just released autobiography ‘Open’ ( great title), aptly dubbed the sports world’s ‘Dope Opera’.
Why now? It can’t be to sell the book – he is a millionaire, and so his wife Steffi Graff in her own right. He doesn’t need the publicity – his fan following is vast.It is a lose-lose situation whichever way one looks at it. He has risked his place in the Tennis Hall of Fame, and shocked his countless admirers by admitting he lied to the ATP, the powerful men’s governing body . And now he is mewing about how all he’s asking for is compassion in place of condemnation. Well, Martina Navratilova for one, is in no mood to sympathise with Agassi and has condemned his conduct, comparing him to baseball pitcher Roger Clemens, who is embroiled in a doping allegation. Boris Becker has accused him of greed.While Agassi himself insists he took
Crystal meth, a recreational drug, to combat depression. As an adult, that is his option. But as a world class sportsman, idolized by millions, his crime is that he lied about it after failing a drug test. That is cheating. And nobody likes a cheat.
The intriguing part of this on-going controversy is why, after so many years, has Agassi suddenly decided to come clean and confess all. One can understand his ‘wig abuse’ admission ( he was balding prematurely and chose to wear a flamboyant, blond wig while playing, so as to impress his fans ). That has to do with personal vanity. It’s perfectly acceptable for high profile celebs to resort to cosmetic tricks in order to keep their followers hooked. What’s a toupee or breast enhancement between friends? Most of our iconic movie stars resort to such props – it is one of Bollywood’s best kept secrets. But deception of the Agassi kind is not acceptable and is bound to create reverbrations in the billion dollar world of competitive sport. Agassi may also be stripped of his past titles, and worse, stripped of all honour and dignity.
So why did he do it?? His tell- all tale has triggered off an international debate. My own theory is that someone in the know must have threatened to expose him. It’s the old blackmailer’s trick. Rather than risk such ignominy, Agassi decided to pre-empt the move by revealing the dirty details himself. Agassi’s ‘misery machine’ ( familiar story of a brutal, abusive father etc etc) may find a few takers. His publishers may be rubbing their hands in glee at the prospect of selling millions of copies. But Andre Agassi has disgraced himself and his family forever. One feels for his kids – can’t be fun being mocked at school for no fault of theirs.How will the scandal pan out?? The next few weeks will be interesting to watch…there goes another personal hero!

From farmers’ suicides to citizens taking their own lives, there seems to be some sort of an epidemic on. As if dealing with typhoid, malaria and cholera is not bad enough, we now have the rather macabre scenario of Mumbaikars who can’t handle the growing stress and decide to say goodbye to it all. The latest one being the 24-year-old Bhandup trader, Dinesh Jain, who killed his wife and two young daughters before hanging himself. An 18- year-old IIT-Mumbai student also shot himself with his father’s handgun, saying he was unhappy with life. All these are ominous signs of a society under tremendous pressure. And we are not at all prepared to deal with panic attacks that lead to suicide.
We have a brand new State cabinet in place. Of course,there are many heavyweight political issues to tackle on a war footing. But what about addressing the human ones, too? Or is that too much to expect from men whose sole obsession is to grab power….and once grabbed, hang on to it!
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I can’t wait to watch ‘Natrang’, the Marathi film ( with English sub-titles) that is the talk of the recently- concluded MAMI film festival. Atul Kulkarni has put in another brilliant performance as a wrestler who is forced to become a ‘naachya’ in a tamasha troupe. And Atul is also the star of another Marathi film, “ Sukhaant’ – The Final Wish, which deals with euthanasia and is generating a big buzz in discerning circles.

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'Kissa Thappad Ka'. It was bound to happen. It has happened. Abu Azmi is dealing with a slap on his face. And he didn't turn the other cheek. Is Hindi really and truly the ONLY National language according to the Indian Constitution? The debate gets bigger and bolder. Arnab Goswami, Rajdeep Sardesai and Barkha Dutt want me to come on their shows tonight and discuss the pandemonium that disrupted the swearing-in ceremony at the Mantralaya today, when Azmi refused to take the oath in Marathi , pointing out that Hindi is the National language..... provoking Raj Thackeray's guys to attack Azmi and deliver a stinging slap . I am in two and three and four minds.....

45 comments:

Unknown said...

Abu Azmi achieved 2 things in one shot. He showed what is MNS to the judges including supreme court judges who are way too lenient with it and he brought it to the public notice what to expect in the coming days.

It is ridiculous to ask the government to take responsibility to individual suicides. Suicide and killing one's family are peronal decisions and nothing will prevent it from occuring. Saying goodbye to all is sweet in its own way.

Atul Kulkarni is one of the best talents and he is quite famous in some south indian films too.

I will always love the flamboyant Agassi who made tennis colourful. There may be many and they may not be coming out in the open.

Neeraj Shinde said...

This Marathi Syndrome is ruining our cities and nation in the broader sense. Regionalism is hitting hard and this might get worse in the coming days! Read on my thoughts for more...
http://shindeneeraj.blogspot.com/2009/11/marathi-manus-lead-or-misled.html

obssesor said...

All of that thappad tamasha is staged...each one playing a role for their own benefit!!

Mukesh Bhatia said...

Everything that happened in Maharashtra Assembly is perfect & correct by all virtue. Its not regionalism, its the pride that one takes about its communicating language. The states in India are born on the basis of language. Why Abu Azmi shud make such a hulla bulla about national language. Where as if he can read hindi, he can very well read marathi. He is the only culprit & everybody knows about his nexus with who's who.
All kudos & thumbs up to Raj men.
I myself am punjabi but being born n brought up in Maharashtra, I respect Marathi by all means, which am really really proud of.

Unknown said...

Nothing wrong, Bhatia. Thappad, murder everything is fair in loving and respecting our respective cultures. Bhatia, long live your tribe.

Neeraj Shinde said...

@Mukesh - It is not about being Punjabi or Marathi! It is about the modus operandi of the activists. How far does that sound appropriate?
Talking about being marathi, I am a maharashtrian.

I am sure, Sobha Mam's below post highlights the same:
http://shobhaade.blogspot.com/2009/10/open-letter-to-raj-thackeray.html

Alex Engwete said...

I like the "misery machine" part of Andre Agassi... So typically American. I tease my daughter, who's 19, to recall all the abuse I'd allegedly put her through while I'm still alive--not to come up with lies about me to justify her failings when I'm dead!!!
Agassi is a selfish man. He can't bear being off the limelight. So he's come back to force us to grieve with him. He recently had an interview with no-nonsense Katie Couric of CBS News who was out there to get him (I think it's the interview you're referring to), then he started crying... Couric couldn't go after him after that! He's a coward...
Also, there are drugs and drugs! I'd understand if he'd smoked some ganja, snorted cocaine or downed some pills! Methamphetamine??? Yuck!!!

Anonymous said...

fifth: blank mind???

Pratap said...

Just watched you on Arnab's show.

You have my sympathies to have to have to be in close proximity with the likes of Nawab Malik and Abu Azmi (even over a video link). You are absolutely right - we should be very ashamed of the kind of people we have elected.

Chandni (Chanz) said...

well well well.... drugs and sports persons go hand in hand... but yeah lying about it and then confessing has definitely made the news... I dont think Andre agassi has done anything wrong here. He is just being a true sportsman (which he wasnt earlier, sadly)... It is true earlier when he lied he did a wrong thing. Doesn't matter if they drugs but what matters is standing upto it and admitting. He didn't and that was wrong. But now he has the guts to say it all. I dont know what consequences he will have to face but since I am his true fan, I will still support him. I hope nothing bad happens to him. He may loose some of his fans. One thing is not clear to me, whether crystal meth is a performance enhancing drug or is it to combat depression. If it is the latter then Andre is still one of the best players this world has..

I just hope that he didnt use it to improve his performance on the court. (coz if he really did use it for his game then he wouldnt have failed a drug test)

Way to go...

Advaita said...

Raj thakerey is no better than taliban. Wish i could slap this dude man !!!!

Latha said...

Shobhaaji,
Why should we depend upon our politicians who are self indulgent as you rightly put.
There is help for everything.
The fol: are some of them:

MUMBAI :

Aasra, Suicide prevention helpline
Helpline — 32473267
To volunteer —32410838
24-hour helpline — 27546669
Take appointments at:
27546667 (3pm - 9pm)
E-mail: asrahelpline@yahoo.com

Prerna: 24-hour hotline for suicide prevention and counselling.
Ph: 022-25905959;
www. prenatrust.org

AANCHAL is the first helpline solely for lesbian & bisexual women in Mumbai. The phone number is (022) 370 4709. It has basically arisen because of the complete invisibility that lesbians and bisexual women have had and continue having in the city. Women who are isolated and fearful of others discovering their sexuality now have a safe place to interact with like-minded women. The phone is attended by a counselor on Saturdays between 3pm and 7pm. Confidentiality is assured. Aanchal gets at least 100 calls a week.

Andre Agassi's tale of confession only reminds me that of Hansie Cronje's match fixing. He got killed at the age of 32 in a plane crash. There were speculations that he was murdered.
I don't know whether people would love or hate Agassi.
Everybody errs. But to confess publicly one needs a very strong conscience. How many of us have that ? They'll certainly be forgiven in God's kingdom.

krish said...

hi

Hindi is not the only national language .....but will i be beaten up for not speaking in marathi.....thats the question.......i dont feel any less as a mumbaikar...than marathi speaking citizens.......same goes for every state in india ...including tamil naidu......


....frankly as a mumbaikar i am so hurt and upset that this is happning in our city whn we have so many other issues .......thats the last thing we want is riots bec of language and it will happen........

As if the naxals were not enough you have thisto lead us to civil war.......god save us...........

Luv

Kris

Abhi said...

Shobha, I have long been an admirer of the fearless show of opinions that you have displayed on public forums. It has always been a refreshing change from the dishonest and "politically correct" cliches spouted by our so called media persona's.
But lately , I am perplexed by your stand on MNS. It seems that you support the MNS cause. You agree to what they are raising as an issue and worryingly , you don't have any problems with manner they have gone about to get the attention. You have, in fact, in the last post said that the objectives that MNS had set out with its initial aggressive (in my opinion, graceless, undemocratic, fascist) has been achieved, as shown by the recent polls and its time for them to set on the new path to change their ways and become a mature party. Can you plainly state this rather than beat about the bush. Abu aazmi "refused to take the oath in Marathi , pointing out that Hindi is the National language..... provoking Raj Thackeray's guys to attack Azmi and deliver a stinging slap". You are in two and three and four minds instead of outright condemning the attack?
How is this incident different from M.F. Hussain's travails? The first thing that you say about M F Hussain is that he should return because he is as much "marathi manoos" as anybody else. How about him being a citizen of the country first or his rights?. How is that any different from the rights of Abu aazmi to take the oath in any language he chooses? or from the rights of a citizen of this country to pursue living in any part of India? Where are you on the usage of "Bombay" in a movie? You are either for MNS ways or you are against it. Hoping that they would become the guiding light after the initial blitzkrieg is similar to inaction by the European governments when Hitler invaded Austria. He did not stop there and neither would anybody who is blatantly flouting the country laws. I think this bit would be topical here : "First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;... - Martin Niemöller ".
The upshot of my rambling above is that please resolve the dichotomy. Stand for rights of every Indian like you are doing for M F Hussain or let every community air out its grievances and take matters in its own hand.
Thanks,
A fellow Indian from U.P.

Unknown said...

Even I wondered that Shobhaa was more on the alleged provocation than the violence indulged. Actually, it seemed to me that Azmi was testing waters. Language is only a weapon to create divisions. Mumbai has become so cosmopolitan that here 3 language formula really works.
Shobhaa has changed. Previously she used to review bollywood movies and suddenly she started talking enthusiastically about marathi movies. I feel the movies she is talking about is qualitatively superior to the over hyped bollywood masala. A welcome change. But there is this deeper issue. The tilt.
Our elected representatives act like a bunch of schoolboys providing real time entertainment? and shock and awe.

Nirbhay said...

MLA(state representative) is for serving the people of Mahatrashtra and should speak in the Marathi language for the common man Marathi speaking in Maharashtra.

Azmi deserved this.By the way 1/2 of India don't understand Hindi(ask your south indian neighbour) and they will only speak in "Enghlish'.

Solve the double standard there and then talk about Raj.

Unknown said...

A thappad long awaited...Narayan Rane always wanted to this anti national, but couldnt do when he was the cm of our state....well done Ram...Sad that u were actually suspended by our night watchman cm who got his second innings to open, unlike the DMK hooligans whi Draupadied Jayalalitha in the Tamil Nadu Assembly...
Iam Sure You didnt miss out this ass talking about Madras politicians talking in their mother toungue Malayalam as per this stupid anti social!

Abhi said...

@Anand,
What Aazmi "deserves" is not a slap but being defeated heavily in a democratic election. If he won despite not speaking Marathi then he is, despite that handicap, representing his people, no? And pray why should I wait to solve the language double standard and then talk about Raj? Is there a priority list? Are his actions not affecting the lives of people?
I have South Indian friends who are against Hindi and I agree with them wholeheartedly.
I would stand for your right to not speak Hindi, and against any law that makes you speak Hindi against your wishes, or for your right to reject an MLA (by voting him out) for not speaking Marathi. But I would not stand for goons beating any person and making him do things against choice. How are MNS any different from Taliban there?
@ kala,
agree with you on the quality over quantity from whatever little I have seen of Marathi movies :) .

aNuP__ said...

Everytime something happens in Maharashtra assembly, The news are all about interviews of UP/Bihari leaders. Hindi is also seen as a forced language in many south Indian states. But nobody is in support of 'the slap' though he deserved it.

::If Hindi is 'National Language', lalu Prasad must speak it properly and condemn his Bihari language.

The Unsure Ascetic said...

Mam,
Saw you on Times Now today with Mr. Padamsee and two others. I don't understand the need for such TV programs when the hosts and other speakers don't let you speak.
What is the need for such programs one when cannot put forward their thoughts with natural articulation and sanity?

Keshav.Kulkarni said...

Shobha,

I liked your guess abou Agassi's confession.

"Most of our iconic movie stars resort to such props – it is one of Bollywood’s best kept secrets." - it is not a secret, they reveal everything on screen from their nose surgery to ...surgery.

"I can’t wait to watch ‘Natrang’, the Marathi film ( with English sub-titles)" - its shocking to read this. You don't understand Marati? I think you live in Mumbai for donkey's years.

- Keshav

Nirbhay said...

@Abhi,
Slapping is the One of the notorious option to prove the point.Beleive me most India fears to be like Bihar & UP where women cannot walk on roads without been taunted.
Forget Taliban and see the base reality in India.In Maharashtra atleast there is some rule of law which is getting spoiled by SP & BSPs.
There is more to constitutional right than lip service.till then each man has to fend themselves and their way of living.

Nandinikakoti said...

Do ye still wanna give the Thackeray brigade a chance as in yo open letter u had mentioned... perhaps yo open letter couldn't reach the targeted audience....
Plzzz don't be soft and let loose with your wise side when u attend the shows of the news channels...

introspection said...

Shobhaa, your TV appearances are not half as crisp, double edged, evocative, and strong as your writing force. Stick to it and go ballistic with it, but don't dilute it with weak interviews, and TV discussions.

Rahul said...

I wonder whats the big deal ???? I mean Agassi took drugs , failed a drug test, then lied that he never took it and then wrote a book abut himself that he used drugs? :)

Firstly aint that a mocekry of the drug inspection committee or wht so ever at this stage????? no I dont think he wants compassion or sympathy?? why should he???

And btw I also donot understand whts the big deal about this drugs abuse that we talk about sports man???

Cough syrups a drugs in sporting terms, they r not doing heroin or cocacine man???? Do u hav any any slightest idea wht drug abuse is????

I saw on of my own committing suicide coz he was not able to overcome heroin addiction..thats an abuse.....

Tell me something did drugs really enhance the talent of players like maradona or agassi or any one till date...???? Man u get dizzy in a trip, U cant think propoerly, cant see properly and cant talk properly...
Yeah I m not talking about steriods,,,,...then if i am then u guys gonna have to crucify half the bollywood and hollywood actors...remember stallon was caught once with 21 vials in airport..... It always takes something extra to have a physic like that
but any way this dosnt means one should go for drugs...ny kind...but hell at least let us know wht kind of drugs do we really catagorize as drugs eh...yeh i remember once i saw a list in the police department....The ADG showed me...( Guys I work as consultant to them dont think other wise) :P
Any way ....

Anil Kumar said...

Is Hindi really a national language?

WOW...That sums up your state of mind.

I hope you are not under pressure and Agassi blackmailer is not after you.

Is English really a global language?? Please respond Ms De.

चंद्रमौलेश्वर प्रसाद said...

" I am in two and three and four minds....."
Why should you be? When it comes to Hindi[which is not only the national language but also the official language] we Indians having slave mentality still cling to English and have scant respect for our own language. Why doesn't raj ban English in the same breath. People like him think tha MAHArashtra is bigger that RASTRA:)

Anonymous said...

This is not to condone the assault, but:

"The official language of the Republic of India is Hindi with English as a secondary official language;[1] states in India can legislate their own official languages.[1] Neither the Constitution of India, nor any Indian law defines any national language."

Source: Official languages of India

ekta khetan said...

That is atrocious. There should be some kind of governing laws to prevent and admonish such actions! Parliamentarians are increasingly becoming the spoiled child of Indian constitutions.

Agassi’ stuff is contradictory in the sense that why now is he publishing such details? Garner record sales for his book? Off course. Some people do not need just money but also a relief to their ego by creating foofraw and achieving tall fame for things they do.

They just do no want to “go out of circulation”. Such a attention seekers.

http:ektakhetan.blogspot.com

swapku said...

Wish Raj Thackeray had found a better way of getting his point across. Violence only alienates people. There is no point in hitting losers.
Instead of discussing which language should be spoken where, MNS people should go to the northern states and try and improve living conditions there. That would be a real show of power.

viksdes said...

Dear Madam, With all respect and over the years following your articles and blogs you come across as Liberal , 21st century world citizen. Mi pan marathi ahe, but I dont understand your last few sentences on 'Thapad Kissa'. I dont understand why you are in double mind, in fact it is obviously implying that you support the MNS cause. If that's the case I guess we have no future left,. jar asa asel tar Mala ya rajyashi kivha deshashi kahi ghaicha nahi ahe. I though there are few good men /women still left, thoise who had a voice and can use it effectively. Your post is dissapointing. I want a state and a country that will respect it's citizens, not discriminate based on 'language'. Poeple like me who do have a choice will be forced to quit your land (read Mumbai / India whatever)

Nandan said...

Hindi is certainly not the National Language.. It is only an "official language"..
Abu Azmi couldve taken the oath in Marathi.. He took it in Hindi only for his vote bank...
I wonder if he wouldve done the same in Tamil Nadu Assembly..

Anonymous said...

IF Raj Thakre is a demon, Abu Azmi is no angel.
He has always tried to use the Hindu-Muslim and Marathi-non Marathi divide for gaining political mileage. He wrote a letter to the Speaker, in chaste Marathi , saying that he be allowed to take oath in Hindi since he did not understand Marathi!!
By the way I am a new entrant in the blogosphere..it would be very nice of you to visit my blog to read my complete article on this issue and leave a comment or two. Here's the URL
http://theindianrationalist.blogspot.com/
Cheers!

Bhushan said...

Understood, Abu Azmi cannot speak Marathi. Why didn't Abu Azmi speak one marathi line either before or after the swearing in? He is a stubborn, adamant animal that needs to be tought lesson. After all, it is Maharashtra and he SHOULD respect Marathi. I think he is intelligent enough to read the marathi script(one line).
To all those who say "this is a civilized soceity", then be civilized enough to follow the culture where you live, and locals will respect you in return.

sk900075 said...

Abu Azmi deserved a slap!!! The venue wasn't right and the occassion wasn't right either. Why criticize just Raj? Just go down south (Tamil Nadu in particular) and you will very soon realize what status 'Hindi' language enjoys there. 'Hindi' is a regional language too. Just because majority of the politicians at national level and PMs had been from the 'Hindi-speaking' states, doesn't qualify it as a national language. If he has no concern for the local tradition and language and just wanna earn his living here, he should move out of this state. Everyone is aware of the nexus between Azmi and 'D Company' and also his 'anti-Indian' rants and stance. It's pretty obvious that Azmi's act was deliberate and intentional too.

The link given below will definitely elucidate some misconsceptions arising out of this issue.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Official_languages_of_India

Unknown said...

Shobhaa's is a case of heart and brain. Her heart bleeds for MNS and her brain says dont Shobhaa, you have an all India and also an international image. Crudely, it seems she wants to eat the cake and have it too. Thus she throws everyone into confusion immediately. and then both pro MNS And anti MNS start wondering about her dichotomy. Even if I am in her place I may be doing the same by not taking a permanent stand. MAY BE. Oh, Hamlet, where are THOU?

Maria said...

Well, even if one doesn't like Abu Azmi and what he stands for, is THIS the way to behave? Tut tut tut...

Shobhaaji, I've been a fan of your for a long time, love your writing...it is a pleasure to discover your blog.

Harish said...

Aai Shappath!

shivyaa and rowdyness has found a place in mantralaya. Huh! shameful.
People provoke, and people get provoked. Both parties suffer from Premature Ejaculation of emotions, they just cant gestate and hold erect a thought and play strategically when the time is right...

They pounce at every oppurtunity that will make either look like goons and goondaas.

I dont mind a proposal from Raj.. to have the swearing in in Marathi. I dont mind if he follows it up vigorously and rigorously in the courts and engages in a healthy debate. I, most times, have no issue with peoples thoughts... but definately take it as a matter of shame if people behave so poorly.

I feel we should shower our sympathies on these demented souls. It is said that Azmi provoked and thus anger invoked...

it is like a school boy fight.. "he showed me a finger.. i broke it" How immature... both the one who showed the finger and the one who reacted to such petty signals.


My advice to either....
Grow Up People... or visit school again to learn some basic manners!

Which school??? You could go to the ENGLISH MEDIUM SCHOOL that raj's kids go to... BOMBAY scottish...

Naam toh sunaa hi hogga.

Unknown said...

its not a publicity stunt,i support aggasi not jus bcoz he confessed but bcoz he atleast confessed.we don't know how many of them still hanging out freely,but it will be a lesson for WADA n other testing agency for stringent measures to be taken while testing players for drug use.moreover thousand times we have seen ppl confessing after retirement ,so y not accept dis one.......

Unknown said...

To all Raj Haters maybe you not seeing this...

http://truthdive.com/2009/11/11/the-language-of-raj-thackeray/

Akshay said...

Nice blog..as always.

'Kissa Thappad Ka'.I want to ask some questions to all ppl who hates raj.

--why after incident national news channel taken opinion from only hindi heartland leaders.

--Was not azami wrong to make public challenge abt. language.

--He can did it quietly.

--Azami is MLA right,but do you know 1.he has property of 200 crores.2.He played a card of religion very well.

--I never support goodanism,but no one can compel me to accept Hindi at the cost of Marathi.

--I love marathi to end.

--the truth is nowhere in constituency written the sentence as 'Hindi is Nation language', it is official one.

--Marathi ppl are always resonlable only when they are loosing their identity in their land they are upset.

Sidhusaaheb said...

If the MNS disagrees with what Mr. Azmi stands for, it should try and defeat Mr. Azmi and his party electorally.

Theyoginme said...

Shobhaa I saw Agassi on David Letterman last night. He seemed quite genuine and it didn't appear his book was motivated by a pre-emptive response to anyone else coming out with his past drug abuse.

The guy never wanted to be a tennis player, his passion is to help under privileged children in Las Vegas get education (it ranks 50th in kids that don't finish high school).

He has confessed his drug use was around the time he was ranked 141 in ATP rankings, probably at a very low point in his life while he struggled with his short lived marriage to Brooke Shields. He stopped it as soon as it was detected in a drug test, so it was short lived. It doesn't appear he was winning any tournaments during that time.

People make mistakes. He made one, but I am not sure it got him ahead, probably sunk him further and was his wakeup call. I would cut this guy some slack....

mazamanoj007 said...

Abu Azmi deserved a slap!

How people like Azmi get elected in maharashtra. those who feel ashamed whatsoever happened in maharashtra assembly have to dig out past record of assembly in UP and Bihar, they people even did with chair war and I am shocked when they talk about assembly ethics!

Unknown said...

Should we assume that defragmentation of India has started or nearing completion? Will the number of segments be the same as odd 600 princely states as was before independence? How many Azmi and Raj will be required to complete this process? Which companies will replicate the East India Company? Since whenever I visit any district I feel like visiting an autonomous state, where each person thinks they are the best and others should follow them. As far as language is concerned it is being reported that India will be the largest English speaking country in the world within few years. Azmi and Raj might be aware of the fact that English is not our language. I understand that spirits of oath is much more important than the language of oath. How many politicians, bureaucrats and other functionaries practise the spirits of oath?