JPO Project

This was my submission for the CIA 2 of the JPO course. I had to analyse Bachi Karkaria's articles over a span of 5 weeks w.r.t. to Public Opinion. I got 19/20 for this.

(Disclaimer: Each person’s opinions are shaped by different triggers and motivations and stereotypes and interests. I do not intend to offend anyone with the content in this project.)

Bachi Karkaria

Bachi Karkaria is an Indian journalist and columnist who is best known for her satirical column called ‘Erratica’ in the Times of India newspaper, in which she has also served as editor.

Bachi Karkaria has a writing style filled with humour and words of English that may not appeal to the average reader who may be content to just quit labouring through the article. However none of the words appear forced or out of place and look as though the columnist is attempting to flaunt her outstanding vocabulary.

Karkaria was the first Indian on the board of the World Editor Forum and is a recipient of the US based Mary Morgan-HEWITT Award for the Lifetime Achievement, and a Jefferson fellow of the East West Centre, Honolulu.

At a promotional event for the launch of her new book ‘In Hot Blood’ Bachi Karkaria said, “When you write, you aren’t looking at who your writing is going to antagonise. Your audience is the truth.”

Public Opinion is views prevalent among the public. The column in some places reinforces it and in other places it attempts to present another point of view so as to take advantage of the volatile nature of Public opinion.

I asked a few journalists as to what does Public Opinion mean in the industry? They told me it’s actually the Editor’s opinion that influences the media aspect of Public Opinion. When I spoke to Bachi Karkaria, she said she meticulously edits her columns to adhere to the word limit so that there are no changes made by the editor.

Derrida argues that public opinion is both cultivated and developed at the same time as being neither totally manufactured nor contrived (it shares the same structure as artifactuality and actuvirtuality) (1)

I see this at multiple places in the columns, where these words of Derrida come true.

1993 and all that (3)

The headline of the column and the subheading is what grabbed my attention as just a few days back, news came that Mustafa Dossa, Abu Salem and 3 others had been convicted for their roles in the 1993 Bombay blasts. “FINALLY” is what would be the general reaction. The media reported this as a victory to all the victims of that sad day in March.

They wanted the public to be of the opinion that justice has been delivered and kin of all those affected have some sense of closure. Through her column Erratica, Bachi Karkaria subtly drops the names of the absconding Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon (these names were missing from media reports everywhere, possibly because it doesn’t need space as the audience knows about it or they don’t want some flaws to overshadow something good) to re shape our opinion about the sentencing.

Public Opinion would be that it is finally closure.

“It’s not yet closure”, this line prompts us to think about Dawood and Tiger and re shape the opinion the rest of those who weren’t directly affected. Is it really closure? What closure? Not yet. Maybe only for the courts that finally after almost a quarter of a century Closed the cases of a few of the chief perpetrators.

While a journalist does his or her job they cannot lose sight of objectivity (unless of course they are drunk with nationalistic power, then they are exempt from this). Like every other Bombayite, Bachi Karkaria shares her story as to where she was, that fateful afternoon.

The opinion here is that Bombay is not a place but an emotion that all of us experience in some way and we blend into the city. The readers feel a connect to what is written here. Those who experienced that day, as well as others who have witnessed Bombay burn to the ashes and rise like a phoenix. Those who have experienced the Spirit of Bombay (the floods of 29/8 saw that spirit come back to the fore and many others yesterday after reading this will relate with converting to Bombay)

Damned Celebrity Again (4)

My attention was grabbed by the words celebrity and the sub heading which saw had the word Indrani positioned right beneath the word celebrity.

Bachi Karkaria in this week’s column commences with an attack against the media and its coverage of events. It shapes the Public Opinion against the media. The opening line of the column raises the question as to whether the media would have bothered about the custodial killing on Manjula Shetye (who is that?) had Indrani Mukherjea (we know who this is) not played a stellar role in the ensuing riot.

Public opinion is that media will only be drawn to news if there is a celebrity involved. This article reinforces that stereotyped opinion. There is no satirical element in this column as readers have grown accustomed to seeing in this space every Thursday morning. Would anyone have given two hoots about the killing of an inmate? Yes, maybe for a while, as that’s how modern day media is.

Next attack, prison riots do make for appealing, eyeball grabbing news (very important in today’s era of TRP) not for sympathy, but for the reason of a catfight. The Public is of the opinion that they need media for entertainment and not information. (Republic TV has the highest viewership). This shapes the opinion of the media and they broadcast more eyeball grabbing stuff. 

It would be covered just long enough (2 days) for to the noises to emerge about mean jailors and demands for reform. Then it would stop exciting us (that’s the opinion of media houses). We would form the opinion that ‘ aisa tho chalta rehta hai.’ It’s the media that shaped it like this. But this riot had a big name involved. INDRANI. Despite being a criminal, she is a big deal, hence the riot is a big deal. It’s the name Indrani that has the media maintaining a sustained interest in this past its expiry date. That’s our opinion of celebrities nowadays. Had any other prisoner stood up for the deceased inmate and incited a riot, we wonder what would have happened, no really. Would the media have known that said inmate is being threatened?

While researching for this project even I didn’t know about the deceased inmate and actually googled the words ‘Indrani Prison riot.’

In the last paragraph one final pot shot is taken at the media and the system. The issue that the columnist wants us to contemplate on is why change can only arrive on the back of a celebrity. Why can’t a common inmate deaths be the sole factor behind meaningful change being brought about? Along with the media, it is the fault of the audience as well, we consume what they put out and hence encourage them and their opinion is that we are interested in celebrities. What does it say about us? Indeed, what does it? Do we need the celebrity to bring about change? That stereotype of celebrity is so great that it shapes public opinion in such a way that if a celebrity does something, it must be important, but if a common man does something no one’s going to look at it.

This piece aims to sway Public Opinion that celebrities belong on a pedestal.

WHAT’S IN A RENAME? (5)

What’s in a name? Is what is stuck in our heads. That quote, by playwright William Shakespeare has seen a prefix added to its last word. Would Dadar feel less congested were it to be re-named Chaityabhumi?

Yeh Sarkar acha station nahi banayega par naam badalne mein sab paisa karch karega. That’s the general Public Opinion at the moment.

In a column in Mumbai, when we talk about rename one would immediately think about the Renaming spree proposed in the city. Evocative names were replaced, yet it is the evocative names that are still used in conversation. VT was given a sex change 2 decades ago and yet even now we say VT, and not CST, but that was not enough, we added Maharaj to it. It’s not just CS(M)T though, imagine that your train has left Matunga road and you hear, “ next station Chaityabhumi” ,  or you leave Churchgate and the next 2 stations are Gamdevi and Girgaon. You would wonder what it is, but whilst booking your tickets you would just by force of habit say Charni road (not Giragaon) right? And the chances are that the guy at the counter would actually get that.

This column reinforces the public opinion that namicide squanders public funds. New sign, new stationery and a new name in our train announcements every morning that snaps us from our reverie. Is that needed?

The column lists out the Shivaji statue in the sea as well. On ‘The Debate’ last night a panellist yelled out that they can’t build roads and want to build a staue in the sea. Wouldn’t that have gone a long way in influencing the opinion of a large number of people?

 The citizens of Mumbai hope that the new coastal road to be named after we-know-who and hope they will remember all the titles they wish to include or else come 2037 we may have to call the coastal road something else. That’s fine, as we’ll always know it by is evocative name, but we will be saddled by yet another cess for suffixes. True Bach Karkaria sarcasm here.

Public Opinion is that the party in power changing will result in such things stopping. The column says that no problem, the new party will appropriate this icon, keep all their supporters and win over the old supporters as well (public opinion is volatile)

In the next sentence it is hinted that the taxpayer would rather their money was spent on changing the battered state of roads rather than just renaming roads. She makes a connect with the disgruntled average citizen by sharing and re inforcing the opinion that one is insane if they think logic or citizens dictate civic decisions.

TEARY OF RELATIVITY (6)

It has always been told to us that our headline must be catchy so as to grab the reader’s attention and make them want to know more. We are playing with Kangaroo words here in  ThEORY (TEARY) of Relativity. 

On an episode of Koffee with Karan, Kangana Ranaut labelled Karan Johar as the “flagbearer of nepotism.” What Kangana speaks of isn’t unheard of or unseen. Public Opinion is that star’s kids seem to just whizz into Bollywood and get cast in a film, deliver a box office dud, get cast in another film, another dud, you get the cycle right? This continues until they deliver a hit (they are bound to deliver one eventually) Question- why do they get cast. Public Opinion on the basis of media and stereotypes- Nepotism. Bachi Karkaria calls Kangana the ‘elected queen.’(Sentiment shared by many) In Game of Thrones we see how people rally behind someone they consider ‘their choice.’ Public Opinion would be that Kangana is right, as she is one rare case that has found a foothold in the industry, without Nepotism.

The second half of the column is intricately constructed around words that contain the syllables of the new ‘N’ word, N-E-P-O-T-I-S-M. In this paragraph, despite the columnist taking a visible effort to construct words from the syllables forming nepotism, none of the words seem out of place. The N-E-P-O-T-I-S-M paragraph paints a picture of Kangana as someone who isn’t going to toe the line, someone who didn’t take lame shots at the opponent and as someone, who has a spine.

After an actor with no sugar daddy who is not from the Bollywood KHANdaan makes it big, we get to hear of their struggles and then we see the beneficiaries of Nepotism (ek flop? Koi nahi, dusra mauka). Who would the public (that struggles) empathise with? After all we support the ones we relate to and Public Opinion would be in favour of Kangana and anti-Nepotists.

At the IIFA Awards 2017, Karan Johar, Saif Ali Khan and Varun Dhawan made a joke on Kangana with a snide reference to a song from a Karan Johar film which has the name Kangana in it. They wanted to sway the Public Opinion as though they were admitting to nepotism.

Now the people who didn’t watch that episode of Koffee with Karan were now aware that Kangana branded Karan as “flagbearer of Nepotism.” More people watch the IIFA Awards, and the ‘joke’ over there is what inspired this column.

The song by the legendary Bee Gees goes like this,.

“ I started a joke, which started the whole world crying But I didn't see that the joke was on me, oh no.”

The joke was on them and Kangana took a 2-0 lead in what started out as a reply to a question. Oh no indeed. In the aftermath, the trio did apologise, but the damage was done. Public Opinion in support of Kangana increased and Bachi’s Column further solidified the ‘Kangana has a spine view’.

Morning Cuppa  (7)

A majority of the country would not give a damn about the activities in Darjeeling. Why should we care? I am in a journalism class and I don’t care (even though I am forced to) Bachi Karkaria makes me care about this though. This column showed me that there are methods to sway public opinion. Attendance and marks aren’t really powerful to sway opinion.

Yet still this is the column that will connect with the readers the most as it deals with the most electrifying legal stimulant i.e. tea.(we have a selfish reason to care about what happens all the way in the east) Now we do need to give a damn about what is happening there right? You may say no, as you don’t consume tea. Wrong! You live in India and you need to understand one thing. Tea is the fuel of the body, opinion about the beverage is so powerful that without it people don’t fully shake of the drowsiness (nope not even a cold shower would help them here) This piece works for me as now as if people around me don't get their morning cup of tea, they will be mindfucked. I actually want to know more about what is happening in Darjeeling as here I’m not bogged down by details, but I have an interest so as to want to get bogged down by the details.

This column gives readers the bare minimum of information (the strike by Gorkha Janmukti Morcha and cessation of sale of Darjeeling tea due to shortage) needed to have context with the real world and the column. The last 2 lines are a sarcastic dig at all the pretenders that will emerge to substitute chai, but no “atrocious concoction” will be able to replace the original(Public Opinion is that nothing can replace our chai) The columnist makes another connection to her readers with the subtlety of a sledgehammer with the words ,” of all legal stimulants, tea takes the cake, and I will go any lengths for my Darjeeling.” Won’t we all go any lengths for that morning cup of freshly brewn tea? Won’t we? I know people who would.

Bachi Karkaria is a columnist not of a specific genre, she writes on anything and everything. Her columns generally provide us with some background on the issue and the she seemingly takes the side of the Janta and reinforces their Public Opinion.

This column deals with a multitude of events, events that I never bothered about. Some of the events dealt with were within my experience. I chose the columnist as I heard that she’s the curator of the Times Litfest, I started reading the column for this project, I started following news apart from sports and entertainment. Safe to say as I have experienced the ‘Spirit of Bombay’ on 29/8 when social media was flooded with posts of people opening up their homes. I have seen the struggle of Nawazuddin Siddique to make it big in the industry whereas trash like Tiger Shroff goes on getting cast in films.

I am sick and tired of the media just covering issues for 2 days and then losing interest. All news channels pounded the BMC with questions on 29/8 and then not a thing was said the next day after the usual noises was made. The BMC knew they just had to weather the storm that was Arnab’s yells. There is no follow up, but, if Sachin Tendulkar had gotten stuck, minsters Goswami and Shivshankar would have been screeching their lungs out.

The conclusion of the rename article is relatable as honestly, when has citizen’s inconvenience ever mattered?

 Darjeeling now will be an area of interest because of how people from this city are conditioned to the beverage. If tea stops it indirectly affects… me.

Lippman in his book Public Opinion, says a newspaper by the handling of particular events a newspaper decides if one is to like or dislike it, to trust it or refuse it.(2)

I like the column and I trust the column. It entertains and informs.

1. https://books.google.co.in/books?id=krbgBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT89&lpg=PT89&dq=derrida+public+opinion&source=bl&ots=U00WN5Z1Rw&sig=_HlyVle2xRcw5JN2vDYE8xh8ktM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjE2IzAtv_VAhVBLo8KHfNPBFQQ6AEILjAB#v=onepage&q=derrida%20public%20opinion&f=false 

2. http://www.collier.sts.vt.edu/5314/lippmannpublicop.pdf

3. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/1993-and-all-that-the-death-and-life-of-those-first-bombay-blasts/

4.https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/damned-celebrity-again-we-need-an-indrani-to-take-note-of-poor-manjulas-jail-killing/

5. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/whats-in-a-rename-might-as-well-take-this-mania-to-its-looniest-lengths-f0-9f-98-9c/

6. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/teary-of-relativity-how-many-words-and-worlds-can-you-find-in-nepotism-f0-9f-98-9c/

7. https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica/mourning-cuppa-if-its-tea-goes-downhill-can-bracing-darjeeling-be-far-behind-f0-9f-98-9c/

Best Movies to watch on Teacher's Day

(This was my submission for the Internal Assessment for the Feature and Opinion course)

What is a teacher? I asked a teacher as to what they think a teacher is. The reply was, “someone who has lessons planned for the next two weeks, but has no clue about that night’s dinner.”

In 1994, UNESCO proclaimed 5^th October as World Teachers Day. This celebrated a great step for teachers as on 5th October 1966, a special intergovernmental conference in Paris adopted the UNESCO/ILO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers

Countries like Maldives and The Netherlands observe teachers day on 5^th October itself. Countries like India (5^th September) have their own respective teachers days.

The movies have made us laugh and made us cry. They have given us portrayals of teachers that we relate to and love and respect. In today’s day and age we wish we had more teachers like them.

Here are some of the best teacher portrayals in movies. As the efforts of one teacher cannot undermine the efforts of another, the numbers do not determine the ranking.

1. Robin Williams as John Keating (Dead Poets Society)

I stand upon my desk to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way.

             Welton Academy, dubbed “Hellton” by its students has four pillars: Tradition, Honour, Discipline and Excellence. The teachers at Welton follow the first 3 pillars to drive the students towards the fourth pillar. All of them, bar the new teacher-John Keating.

John Keating or O Captain, my Captain (as he wishes to be called) says, “Because I love teaching, I don’t want to be anywhere else.” This shows us an essential quality of a teacher- passion.

John Keating aims to help his students to seize the day and live. It is something that doesn't happen in today's rat race. Teachers like him are a precious commodity.

Mr Keating encourages his students to rip out an entire chapter from a book.

The pages contain an introduction by Dr Pritchard. This introduction seeks to measure poetry based on a graph. According to Keating, measuring poems is similar to armies of academics annihilating the hearts and souls of young ones. Poems can’t be measured. They are filled with passion and are straight from the heart.

In his classes he encourages the students to think for themselves again. Oh how we yearn for such teachers in a world where our original ideas are quashed like bugs, these ideas which if allowed to bloom could change the world or help us be unique. He compares each person’s life as a verse, and how would everyone be unique if they were all the same?

The final scene symbolises wat a teacher can do. A teacher can be the match that lights a fire. The match can be extinguished, but the fire will spread.

 2. Anne Bancroft as Anne Sullivan (The Miracle Worker)

Anne Sullivan attempts to teach Helen Keller the alphabets for ‘doll.’

‘The Miracle Worker’ is based on Hellen Keller’s autobiography, ‘The Story of My Life’. It chronicles the efforts taken by Anne Sullivan to teach alphabets and their meaning to Hellen Keller.

In ‘The Story of My Life’, Helen Keller writes a tribute to her teacher, Anne Sullivan.

“All the best of me belongs to her – there is not a talent, or an aspiration or a joy in me that has not been awakened by her loving touch.”

Hellen Keller is a child who has been rendered deaf and blind since an unfortunate illness struck her in her childhood.

She lived in a dark and isolated world. Even Specialists couldn’t help her out.  Captain and Mrs. Keller seemed to have lost all hope, and then arrived Anne Sullivan. This teacher was the final hope for The Kellers who seemed resigned to sending Helen off to an asylum.

Helen in one of her mad rages knocks out her teacher’s tooth and slaps her across the cheek on multiple occasions. Despite this she stays on, she recognises that the student should not be labelled as bad but as challenging.

Anne Sullivan discovers that Helen first needs to be taught discipline, she knows that the girl’s frustrations need to be checked. Sullivan does not take pity on Helen and battles with her physically (bordering on child abuse) and emotionally (separating Helen from her family for 2 weeks) until she finally makes a breakthrough.

3. Aamir Khan as Ram Shankar Nikumbh (Taare Zameen Par)

Every child is special, but that is not understood by all

9 year old Ishaan Avasthi is misunderstood everywhere and is subjected to thrashings, verbal abuse. He gets shipped off to boarding school as his parents think that his mistakes are not mistakes but acts of rebellion. At his new school, things do not change. He retreats further into his shell and his spirit is broken. The 9 year old now has lifeless eyes and attends class like a robot.

When all hope seems lost, there enters a new art teacher (Ram Shankar Nikumbh). This teacher is different from the rest of the teachers as he doesn’t stamp his authority on the class through fear but gets the students to like him through his unconventional methods. As is the norm with Bollywood films, there are no dialogues but a wonderful song sung by the teacher that encourages children to look at things in a different way. Ishaan however has been scarred so badly that he stops painting. Nikumbh doesn’t seem to mind and he tries to befriend the boy. According to Nikumbh, “every child has his own talent.” Nikumbh finds out that Ishaan’s talent lies in art. The teacher then realises what Ishaan’s disorder is and how it can be countered.

Nikumbh brings out the boys potential through art by teaching him alphabets and numbers through art. In a bid to boost Ishaan’s self-confidence, an all school painting competition is organised.

At the end Mr Avasthi is reduced to tears after seeing his son’s transformation wonders how he can thank the teacher. Nikumbh replies nonchalantly with an, “ah c’mon,” as he was just doing his duty as a teacher.

4. Pat Morita as Keisuke Miyagi (The Karate Kid)

"Either you Karate do yes, or Karate do no. You Karate do guess so you get squish, just like grape."

The words of Keisuke Miyagi are reminiscent of Master Yoda's words from Star Wars. Do or do not there is no try.

We have to learn to take a stand. By acting confused and being in two minds we will neither be here nor there. Imagine you are walking on the road, you either take left side or right side, if you are unsure and walk in centre you will be hit.

We need 100% belief in our own set goals in order to achieve them.

Mr Miyagi saves Daniel LaRusso from a bunch of bullies (The Cobra Kai). As a trade for getting them to lay off him for a while. Mr Miyagi enters Daniel into a Karate Tournament and also trains him for the same. He has one rule-ask no questions. Mr Miyagi makes Daniel do what seems like household work (waxing the car, scrubbing the floor, painting the fence and the house) with particular hand movements. Just as Daniel is about to quit as he is sick and tired of his “karate lessons” Mr Miyagi explains and demonstrates the importance of those tasks to karate.

We then need to believe in the methods of the teacher. They know what the long term goal is. Mr Miyagi, by making Daniel do what seemed like menial household tasks actually imbibed in him the karate movements as natural actions. This style of teaching is not looked at favourably by the student as they want to know why a particular thing is being taught. However we must realise that the teacher is not stupid and doesn’t have time to waste, they also realise that the student has no time to waste and whatever is being taught is for the students benefit.

Another important lesson given here is “first learn walk then learn fly.” It emphasises the need to learn things step by step.

While these actors and actresses pretend for a living, this pretend is based on true stories. Real life isn’t like a movie where the story ends after one success.

The movies end on a high and we assume that it's over. Real life inspires films but what films don't show is that there is so much more effort that a teacher puts in, sometimes even until their death.

The Miracle worker (the only film in this list based on a true story) didn’t mention anything about what happened after Helen Keller Anne Sullivan made a breakthrough in the climax. After teaching Helen Keller the meaning of alphabets and words, Anne Sullivan stayed with Helen for the next 49 years until her death.

The job of a teacher in real life goes back to square one once the next batch comes in. Their stories don't end like how Mr Miyagi’s story ended with Daniel LaRusso winning the tournament. The Mr Miyagi of real life have another Daniel LaRusso and then another and then another and another and another. They have to approach each and every single student with the same level of passion as the first.

There are some teachers who also try and try, but the outcome isn’t like a fairy tale as seen in the above movies. That doesn’t demean the efforts put in by these teachers.

Though the end result may not be as desirable as shown in the movies, but, the effort put in by every single teacher is what we should see and learn from these movies, which can be seen as tributes to the efforts taken by a teacher.

Honourable mentions: Shahrukh Khan as Raj Malhotra from Mohabattein and as Kabir Khan from Chak De! India, Burgess Meredith as Mickey Goldmill from Rocky, Julie Andrews as Maria Von Trapp from The Sound of Music.