Monday, April 23, 2012

My tryst with "Indian Summers"

Seems apt for the season, but this one is actually a book review of "Indian Summers" by John Wright. Before I get to the book, let me cover why I wanted to pick this one and how i picked this one up as that is also a good tale. I remember reading somewhere many years back that  during his coaching days John Wright was of the opinion that Anil Kumble would make a very good captain. Its another matter that Kumble eventually took over the reins and did pretty well and justified the observation of former coach who had watched him from close quarters. Also I heard from somewhere about this book which is basically made of stuff from a diary Wright kept during his coaching days so I was very intrigued to know what went on behind the scenes during a huge transformation period when India went from being an also ran team to a force to be reckoned with in turn leading to creation of a strong vibrant team, fan following and a huge cricket market that is there today.

But the search for this book turned out to be an arduous challenge in itself as most stores didn't seem to stock it, I had tried at small bookstore in Navi Mumbai ( where I was based then) where the owner was friendly and used to be give discounts, but no luck with this one. Tried  Crossword and Landmark bookstore, again no luck. I had started buying off flipkart by then and any book I wanted was there waiting with a generous discount but this one proved elusive. I wasn't daunted put a request to notify me when it becomes available and then forgot all about it. After a few months in a new city I happened to take part and win a quiz competition at my workplace and got Odeyssey bookstore voucher and the first thing I went and checked was this book. Again no luck, the guy was friendly and offered to write it down, he even recognized John Wright as our old coach and promised to talk to someone and get back to me. He never did, still I checked a couple of times but it was leading nowhere and after several futile online purchase searches I slowly forgot all about the book.

This IPL V season started and while discussing cricket with friends the usual who was the best captain ( the usual Dhoni Vs Ganguly) debate started and interesting this time during IPL there was a chance for face-off of several men who had led India and who wanted to lead India. While debating this I again wished if I had access to that book of Mr.John Wright where I hoped he would have shed some light on what really went on and how did Indian team team transform itself was it because of an aggressive skipper who managed to give it back to 'them' ( By backing his mates, giving more chances to people as some believe or by coming late for tosses, whirling shirt from Lord's balcony as some others believe). During one of those chats with Vaidya about cricket and captaincy a couple of weeks back I mentioned that I was looking for this elusive book for a long time. "Try flipkart" was the reply, I was pretty exasperated and wanted to start a lengthy drivel on my search for this book when tht was accompanied by a Flipkart link to the book which claimed it was indeed available. After quickly erasing all that i was typing I typed a quick thank you and promptly placed an order. But the order snagged somehow, towards the end the page went blank and order status was incomplete. Only then I noticed the book was priced at Rs.84 ... surely something was wrong, not again! But then I decided I will try again and ordered another book along with this and this time it went through. Vaidya did warn there must be some error somewhere as no one sells a hardcover for Rs.84 and they might ask for money during delivery. So called up my mom and explained this and told her to give me a call when book comes in case they ask for extra money. The book took some time to arrive and strangely nothing extra was charged. When I got home next weekend, this fantastic hardcover edition with a cover price of 18 Pounds was mine for just Rs.84. Surely there is some cricketing God somewhere!

Now onto the book, it was a pretty breezy read Mr.Wright sure has a good sense of humor and his whole India 'experience' thats what it actually is about is narrated pretty warmly. You cant help smiling when you read through many incidents which would bizarre/unbelievable for those unacquainted with India or Indian cricket. But Wright soaks it all up, learns how things move and slowly but surely changes the course towards something positive. He claims he was not all that soft as media believed and he did give players an earful and had picked up fights with high and mighty in the system but still its hard to shake off the image of the genial Kiwi quietly working behind the scenes and getting things done. However the book doesn't contain anything controversial and Wright is quite measured in his criticism. He is aware of the enormous responsibilities entrusted to him, the expectations from a nation of billion plus with very little sporting success. He is frustrated with the way things work and how an ineffective system is preventing a nation with so much talent from reaching its full potential.

Wright takes through all the major events during his term as coach and for an Indian cricket fan it is guided tour ( Like Directors commentary in Movie DVDs where lot of behind the scenes stuff is revealed) of  Team India's major campaigns which resulted in a lot of wins we are proud of. But Wright steers away from all controversial topics and takes care not to put up names or reveal who did what and instead subtly hints at lot of things. Some of things I liked was his narration of how he landed up in India to take up this job with no contract and not even an Indian visa! Lot of hilarious incidents like culture of players sitting in chairs and sipping tea during nets and munching sandwiches in gym while opposition players sweat it out! Concept of different team managers for every tour and getting people who had no clue as managers and how the concept of having selectors from a  Zonal system is turning the whole thing into a farce is well captured.
How he changed that culture with rudimentary support equipment and not much support from board is a story to read. There are lot of info that most people don't know like how Laxman was almost on verge of dropping out of the famous Kolkata test of 2001 because of a fitness issue and he also does cover the incident that became a 'hot potato' - Dravid declaring with Sachin batting on 194! The way he lost his cool and almost manhandled Sehwag ( just like every Indian fan would have) when he threw his wicket with a reckless shot, the book is replete with many such moments. But the relationship with Ganguly and other major players isn't covered in detail, Wright does point out quite a few things though. I thought he managed to strike a right balance between covering various issues while keeping lid on certain private behind the scenes stuff. Even though he doesn't give out much he leaves enough hints for a careful reader which is why I really liked this book.

Like my post - the book is also more on the overall experience and not just the cricket , the frustration and anguish and the talent and hope that is India for him. How it all comes together to make a great journey made a good reading experience as well. Highly recommended for fans of Indian cricket   

Sunday, March 11, 2012

2011 - List of books

2011 has been the worst year of blogging for me as I somehow couldn't sit down and write on anything that mattered to me, I had taken to twitter at the start of the year and found it tough to go beyond 140 characters after that!

To make amends thought I will atleast try to salvage something out of 2011, a year I managed to spend a lot of time reading. So thought of listing down books I read; I had a very lofty goal at start of the year - 25 books something couple of my friends warned me I will not reach.

So let me see how I fared, here goes my list

1.Temple Goers - Aatish Taseer

2.Have Space Suit , Will Travel - Robert Heinlein

3.Once Upon a Time in Scandinavistan - Zac O'Yeah

4.Smoke & Mirrors by Neil Gainman - Brilliant collection of bizarre short stories

5.Chinese Whiskers - Pallavi Aiyar

6.Arthur C Clarke's The Collected Stories - (Still not finished) this is a huge collection of his short stories right from 1930s to 90s. Its been a fantastic read, I usually read 2-3 stories once in a while. As I write about it I feel guilty of having neglected the book for last 4 months. But more on that later in the list

7.India After Gandhi by Ramchandra Guha - A must read to get an idea of how our nation evolved after independence ( good read atleast till 80s )

8.Room - Emma Donoghue

9. A Concise Chinese English Dictionary for Lovers - Xialou Gou : Story of a Chinese girl who goes to England to learn the language learning much more about the strange land and an unusual love story. One big diff was the way story is narrated, its from the perspective of this girl and the English in the book is her English - Badly formed sentences, wrong words etc! and it gradually improves as her language and understanding of culture improves ...

10.The Artist of Disappearance - Anita Desai

11.Transforming India - Atanu Dey

12.Chinaman by Shehan Karunatilaka - Thanks Vaidya for the recco, delightful read!

13.Blaft Anthology of Tamil Pulp Fiction ( still reading this, slowly one story at a time)

14.Batman : The Killing Joke - Alan Moore (ofcourse- just had to get this :)

15.The Hotel At the End of the World - Parismita Singh

16.Wide Angle - Anil Kumble ( its a photo album/coffee table book)

17. The Eight Guest and other Muzzafar Jang mysteries - Madhulika Liddle

18. Ambani and Sons - Hamish McDonald ( had to get this after 3 years of working for Ambani! )

19. The Secret of Nagas - Amish

20. Tea time for Traditionally Built - Alexander McCall Smit ( yet another book from the delightful No:1 Ladies detective agency series! )

Then towards the end of the year I got lost in the world of Westeros and other continents created by George RR Martin, easily the best stuff in world of fantasy. Guess the Songs of Fire and Ice series deserves a separate post, but this is what i covered last year

21. Book One : Game of Thrones

22. Book Two : A Clash of Kings

23. Book Three : A Storm of Swords

24. Book Four : A Feast for Crows

25. Salt - A World History by Mark Kurlansky

25 incidentally was my target at start of the year and until i started on George RR Martin's heavy tomes, I was well set to go past that number. And as you could probably notice there are 3-4 books in various stages of completion in that 25 ;)

Hoping I will touch 25 books in 2012 as well :)

Thursday, March 01, 2012

Fair Meter :: Meter Fare

Hailing an auto-rickshaw in Chennai is a rare event for me, I usually travel by car to places nearby and work, use buses/train to get to places a bit far away. Last sunday it so happened that I had to go somewhere in between and was short of time so had to hail one. Chennai is notorious for its meter-less autos and so fare needs to be fixed through a negotiation process before trip begins. The initial quote depends on lots of factors from your appearence, confidence with which you ask about the destination, language used ( to judge if you are an outsider). After the mandatory haggling we agreed on a mutually acceptable rate and started the journey. But the driver that day was in mood to talk and talk he did throughout the journey. It all started with my casual remark about the exorbitant fares charged and lack of proper meter system. He made it clear that he doesn't really like doing this rate negotiation etc and is actually hurt by the usual talk that Auto drivers are out to cheat/fleece people and the talk of them being an ill-mannered, rash, reckless lot. That set tone for the conversation throughout the trip.

I asked why not have a meter, what is preventing all of you from using one and going with standard rates as people clearly avoid autos as much as they can. Does he really get adequate business? "We are also normal people who want to earn an honest living, we also have kids going to school and a wife to answer to, vegetables,provisons, rent for house,auto etc" he started. Majority of Auto drivers in Chennai take Autos on rent and need to cover petrol/bribes to cops and any damages to vehicles at the end of day whatever is left after all this is what they take home. "No one wants to fleece as such but situations have forced them" he added and mentioned the fear of his wife's potential scoldings when he goes home in the night with days earnings as one of the reasons for aggressively asking higher rates! I asked him if he agrees that by installing a meter with proper defined fare, the amount of business he does will go up and he will earn more?

He agreed to that saying that is what most of his ilk want but he laid the blame squarely on Government's shoulder. According to him the current meter rates were fixed last decade or even before when petrol prices were still in 30s. When they pay 70 plus now for the same litre of petrol how can they be expected to make any money by plying at old rates he asks. Then he was quick to point out people are not to blame, and that he understands the frustation and anger of middle class against Auto drivers. "No one gets money easily everyone has to work hard to make ends meet, we definitely understand that and even though we try to get more but not at cost of angering customers". He also felt that "Customer should pay willing with open heart if they curse you while giving then that money will not help you or stay with you". That''s quite a thin line indeed they are treading on, given the amount money they ask at first!

He maintained that its a misconception that its easy money for Auto drivers and they are altogether an unscrupulous lot. He started on 'being honest' vs 'being practical' thing and added that lot of people including himself when they start off try to be honest and not overcharge. But then at the end of the day the money earned is simply not enough. His thought process was simple, he felt he had to earn slightly more than an unskilled labourer and if that cannot be achieved there is no point continuing. For a man who rued not being educated enough - he is ensuring his children are educated properly and is counting on them to bail him out once they grow up - his usage of English words amazed me. Maybe it because of living in a city,he used words like "System", "Supply-Demand" and a couple of other English words. I suggested that he could probably look at changing the line of work or something. He admitted that given the way petrol prices are going up he might have no other choice but to shift to something else but he has been doing this job for a long time hence the reluctance to move. It was a different experience talking to people we stereotype as a unscrupulous cheats out to fleece us and to hear their side of the story.

I then moved to another trend in Chennai transport which has always piqued my interest - something called Share-Auto. This is something which evolved and became a very efficient alternate mode of transport in Chennai and I'm told in several other places in TN where the autos dont 'run on meter'. Share-Auto as the name implies is a vehice usually a rickety Piaggio/Bajaj on much bigger capacity where lot of people who pay anything between ( Rs.5 to 15 based on distance/route) share the ride. In Chennai- esp in the route I travel to work, these rickety vehicles have been replaced by sleek Tata Magic which provides very comfortable seats and feels very safe to travel in.

So I asked our man on his views on Share-Autos and what do Auto drivers feel about it. He admitted that they(Auto drivers) are to 'blame' for this and that most of the current share auto drivers are all former auto drivers who sold their vehicles and upgraded to this because of the earning potential. They easily make 3-4 times what he makes in a day he says. According to him no one really expected this to click, initially when these vehicles were availble those who purchased them had hoped to use them for passenger transport to longer distances just like autos. But somehow this model evolved without official permission, since the people driving it/owning it were not able to make ends meet they started taking in more passengers ( multiple sets of paying passengers), this was done surreptiously. They were always under threat from any policemen who notices it and it was a risky business but was profitable as more people saw this as a means to earn support for making this legal grew. But the biggest support for this according to our man came from the vehicle manufacturers, he is sure that they had 'invested' quite a bit of money to get the licenses cleared and create this market segment. And it has really taken off and filled the huge gap in public transport for the middle class and lower middle class. Esp frequent commuters - office going folks and students, for them this has become a very good way to travel where they need to wait for long time for a crowded bus, instead travel more comfortably and quickly at a slightly higher rate than bus but at 1/4th or 1/5th of auto-rickshaw.

I returned back to why things are like this for Auto drivers, why cant they pressurise their union to get Govt to increase the fares if that's what is needed to ensure proper adherence to meters. Apparently Govt has issued too many licences for autos but now they don't want so many Autos on streets and hence they are in no mood to make the system work. Maybe it is true, but somehow that didn't quite make sense to me. Chennai sure has a decent public transport system. But having lived for a while in Mumbai where Buses,trains, autos/cabs co-exist I still feel we need Autos charging affordable/standard rates are must.

While on Autos and meter fare, came across this really neat crowd-sourcing site - MeterPodu Aim of the site is to help in providing average/acceptable meter fares for a given journey ( if u specify a from and to destination in a city) by voluntary data update by people.Brilliant initiative, really essential for a city like Chennai - more power to the guys behind this! Hope it picks up and some standard evolves despite apathy of those in power ...