Senna

Watched a movie on a flight after a long time last week. The cover of the movie guide enticed me into it. The movie was 'Senna', a documentary on the life of Aryton Senna, the Brazilian F-1 champion. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1424432/
When i lived in Brazil, i used to hear a lot of people say how they loved Senna. I could never really understand why, afterall he had been dead for almost 15 years then. Yes sure, Senna was a three time world champion, incredibly good looking, and Brazilian. Some people speculated about his being gay; most others said they cared two hoots about it; in short, Senna was worshiped, almost as God.
The movie gave a perspective , and also enhanced my understanding about the way he gave a lot of pride and joy to Brazilians. This was late 80s, early 90s. Almost everything that could be wrond with a country was wrong with Brazil. Commonly used words to describe the country were Unemployment, hyper inflation, rogue government and corruption.
And worse, they had not won the Football world cup for two decades.
Senna, through his heroics on the F-1 track, and through his proud display of partiotism, was just the hero that Brazil was looking for.

Even after being the world champion, Senna had not won the Brazilian Grand prix. The way he drove, despite a technical fault in his car, battling severe pain and cramps, through the sheer power of will, to win at Sao Paulo was one of the most emotional moments i have seen in any sport. Everyone at the track, from the supposed-to-be-neutral support staff to the team technicains, was hugging each other when Aryton crossed the finish line. It was more than a race. More than a Grand Prix. It was an event which reaffirmed Brazil's faith in itself. In its ability to overcome the limitations imposed upon itself by others.

Senna fought for the things he felt close to his heart. Very high on that list was the concern he had for the safety of F-1 drivers. The tension on his face, when he was about to start off on what turned out to be the last race of his life, almost reflected an inevitable, forebearing sense of destiny. Senna died in May 1994, and all of Brazil plunged into despair. The roads from Guarulhous International Airport were all choked with teary eyed, shell shocked Brazilians as his coffin was driven through. People cramped for any available space that would give them a last glimpse of the hero, who had provided them with joy and a sense of pride in being Brazilian.
Perhaps, it was the Senna effect which then inspired Brazil to win its first football world cup in 24 years a few months later. And perhaps it was also the Senna effect which brought together a disparate nation to start taking concrete steps to rebuild itself. To move away from being a country of the future that it was always destined to be to a country whose time had come.

Thank you Asif Kapadia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asif_Kapadia ) for bringing Senna's story alive

Pharmaceuticals and our weakness as a nation

For the last few days, I have been in Frankfurt, Germany. This is where i write this from. I am here for work, to attend a pharmaceutical conference cum exhibition ( called CPhI ) which was on this week.

This week, the one which just went by, was also the week when two of the most important festivals in India, Diwali and Bhaiya Dooj, were on.

While most of India was in the festive mood, about 50 people from my company, and thousands of Indians from other, were slugging it out at Frankfurt Messe, dragging their laptop trolleys through the labyrinth of halls, trying to showcase how they were cheaper than the other Indian or Chinese, and how they never compromised on the quality of products.

Indians constitute a substantial % of people attending this fair. Indian companies have been at the forefront of efforts in increasing affordability and access to medicine. They have brought the cost of AIDS therapy through generic Anti Retero virals from USD 50 per patient per day to less than USD 1 per patient per day. The Indian generic industry is one of the most cost effective in the world.

Yet, the guys behind the most important fair in the industry decide that it is 26th of October 2011. So what if it is Diwali Day. So what if for 30% , or more of the participants, this is the most important festival in the year. The time when everyone wishes to be with their family.

And what of the Indian response.
Some minor rumblings. A few companies pull out. Organizers say nothing doing. Dates are dates- they are cast in stone. And what happens: most of the Indians turn up. Indian companies' stalls become bigger and better. And bolder.

That is where the boldness stops.

And our weakness as a nation comes to the fore. Unable to take a stand. Not decisive.
It begins with me.
For all my rhetoric in conversations with whosoever i met, for all my sentences here in this blog, i was amongst the thousands of Indians slogging it out.
On the day most important for my family and friends.

Because we are, generally speaking, spineless. We succumb. We are unable to stand up for ourselves. This would have never happened with people from another country. Let us say, for example, had this event been on Christmas day; how many people from Europe would have participated ?

The optimist in me says this is a sign of India's coming of age in the world economic order. Of not letting minor blips like a festival come in the way of growing business. Of improving partnerships with other companies. Of growing Indian exports.

I can't stay amused with that rationale, though.

And the sadness of missing out on Diwali and Bhaiya dooj lingers on.

Karwa chauth

Hyderabad's multi cultural ethos on display, with burqua clad artists applying henna and giving the choice of Arabic and marwari designs

early morning flight, sunrise view, time to update facebook status

Mani and Vaibhav at Jaadoo's age

Face off, dinosaurs of the past and aliens of the future : jaadoo's armies !