My Take – Prem Rao : Stories from a Story Teller

Will India’s future be decided on the streets?

Are we heading for a time when political parties and other pressure groups getting supporters to the streets to fight for their causes will become the order of the day?

The 12 years of the National Democratic Front (NDA) Government rule under Prime Minister Narendra Modi since 2014 has been largely built around stability. Old timers like me who have seen Governments come and go, coalitions made and broken welcomed the era of long term stability. In this regard, this article by Harish Salve a former Solicitor General of India, is informative. Besides, the economy showed great promise by rising as it did over the last decade. It is established beyond doubt that public infrastructure has changed beyond imagination. The ruling dispensation seems to enjoy the support of the majority of people if you go by the number of elections won and lost by them. It is foolish to assume that there is no Opposition worth the name.The Indian National Congress (INC) the principal Opposition won in Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana on their own and Keralam, with their allies.

Recently, Bharat Bhushan wrote in The Deccan Herald that Rahul Gandhi’s new protest playbook redefines the grammar of dissent. He writes, ” A political protest is no longer about a mass gathering at one site but a confrontation that creates dramatic optics, captured on camera, and spread online.” The key word that caught my attention was “confrontation”. More often than not, in India, confrontation on the roads leads to a chain of violence and destruction of public property. Frequently, violence results in injuries to many on both sides at times even fatally. Needless to say, political violence is not new to India. The politics in West Bengal for example has been characterized by violence for many decades. In the old days, violence acts reinforced the myth of ” might is right ‘. Poll violence, stealing of ballot papers and ballot boxes following elections were common place in states like Bihar for example.

We remember the events of July 20, 2026. There was violence when an unplanned march to the Parliament followed a protest meeting at Jantar Mantar organized by the Cockroach Janata Party. (CJP). This resulted in injuries to protestors, police personnel and the public at large. Ajaz Ashraf writes in Frontline, , ” On July 20, the CJP made history by breaking the climate of fear that had kept citizens off the streets under the Modi regime. It showed that organised public protest is possible and politically effective.” Accusations flew thick and thin from both sides. Many protestors, including women were hurt, so too were policemen who faced mob fury especially if they were caught isolated.

Possibly, the Leader of the Congress and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha , Rahul Gandhi realized that the cockroach approach may just work for him too. In the last few days, there has been tension in some parts of Delhi, India’s capital city. There were dramatic scenes too- which leaves us wondering what is to come next. Rahul Gandhi was seen pushing a woman constable in an inappropriate way. Certainly such conduct is and not in keeping with his high stature, especially when recently he lectured on the need to ” smash patriarchy”. Also, his sister, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, MP from Wayanad in Kerala was seen strongly elbowing a woman police constable during the protest.

The right to protest is enshrined in our Constitution. However, if it leads to violence as it invariably seems to be the case, one wonders where this new “playbook of dissent ” will lead to. A former leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and later an influential member of the National Advisory Council during the previous Congress/UPA regime, Yogendra Yadav said, “Future of democracy in India will be settled on the streets and not in parliament or through elections. We saw a glimpse of it on July 20.”

So, is this going to be the way issues will be dealt with in the near future? Is the future of India going to be shaped not in the courts or in Parliament but on the streets? The next test will be on October 10 when the CJP has called for a protest in Delhi once again. With the Government refusing permission for the Cockroach Janata Party to hold this protest, we will have to wait and see what happens.

In The News, My Take

Comparing Generations: Boomers to Gen Z in India

“Gen Z” has possibly become the biggest buzzword in India over the last few months. According to Beresford research, “Gen Z” (with Z being pronounced Zee as the Americans do) are those born between 1997 to 2012 with their current age being 14 to 29. I belong to the Boomers 1 generation – now aged between 72 to 80 having been born between 1946 to 1954. The world in which the current Gen Z live in, is far different from the times when I was their age which translates to 1965 to 1980.

At a global level, the biggest conflict the world had ever seen till then, the Second World War had ended only 20 years ago. The post war Cold War was very much on ( the phrase was coined by Churchill in 1963), The US and the USSR were by far the most powerful nations of the world. Indeed most countries were affiliated in some way or the other with one or either of them. Nehru’s experiment with non-alignment had not proved to be useful. He had died a broken man in 1964 after China attacked India in the winter of 1962. This had resulted in a shameful defeat for India.

As kids growing up in India, to put it mildly- times were hard. In 1965, India’s population was 490 million. The poverty rate was 45-50 % which peaked to 62 % in 1966-67. India’s nominal GDP was $59.37 billion with a per capital income was about $121. The average life span was 44-45 years . Overall there was scarcity and apprehensions about the future. Food rationing was very common and luxury goods were beyond the reach of most people. Those were the days when having a car or a telephone was a major luxury! There was a premium on “imported goods” and everything ” foreign ” was considered to be great! Television and social media were no where in sight!

The 1980s- the end of my Gen Z days- saw war in many parts of the world like Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq etc. Thankfully the long drawn out Viet Nam war ended in 1975. We in India were much better than in the 1960’s but still way behind much of the developed world. The nominal GDP was $186.33 billion with a per capita income of $267. About half the population of 692 million still remained under the national poverty line. Scarcity continued to haunt us. Our generation was used to a hand to mouth existence which engrained frugality and the need to save so deeply in our psyches!! As a result, today when we can afford to live a far better llife, many of us still fear about “saving for a rainy day”!!

Today’s India’s nominal GDP is $4.15 trillion with a nominal per capita income of about $2800. The average lifespan is around 72 years. The population of over 1.40 billion continues to grow and the extreme poverty rate has fallen sharply to about 2.3 %. More than anything else, the quality of life across the board has improved very significantly. Food supply and health care have changed beyond recognition. Today, there is nothing which is unavailable in India- for a price of course! The days when we as kids were happy to get a few candies from relatives coming from abroad are long, long over!

In this context, since standards of living have gone up considerably what we used to consider a luxury are now part of everyday life. The highways have improved beyond belief. The airlines and railways are far better than they were back in the day. However, like we expected better decades ago, today’s Gen Z too expects better. They are impatient and scornful of elders- as once we were- and want everything now! E Commerce had created new standards of instant gratification. You can get most things delivered to your doorstep in less than 20 minutes these days!

Today we have in India the largest population of the young in the world! The percentage of Gen Z is reckoned to be about 25-28 % of India’s population. This translates to about 368 to 427 million individuals! To put things in perspective for readers in the US, the population of that large country is about 350 million!

Naturally, our Gen Z has aspirations higher than previous generations. This is the biggest challenge the leaders of our country face as we move towards the closing years of an eventful decade.

In The News, My Take

Jyotirmayee Nayak Crowned Indian Idol 16 Winner

We were thrilled to see Jyotirmayee Nayak win Indian Idol 16 last night. This popular show on Sony Liv is a favorite amongst many music lovers in India and abroad. In my family, over the years we have become major fans of this program. I can still remember the very first season of Indian Idol which was won by Abhijeet Sawant in 2004. It was a good to see him and many of the past winners of the show on July 4, 2026. It was a great gesture on the part of the show’s producers to bring them back for sheer nostalgia.

Now coming back to Season 16. When we saw Season 15 we felt the standard of the participants was very high. I now feel that Season 16 had an even more talented bunch of singers. Like last year, when Manasi Ghosh became the first female to ever win the title of Indian Idol, this year too a young lady won the title. I have always supported Jyotirmayee Nayak from her first introduction when she sang for cancer patients in their hospital wards as a music therapist.

I was thrilled that Tanishk Shukla was the first runner up. He richly deserved the title. When the winner was given Rs 20 lakhs as prize money, the organizers should have given him- the first runner up Rs 10 lakhs or even Rs 7.5 lakhs. Instead he was given Rs 5 lakhs- the same amount as the second runner up, Manraj Veer Singh. What then is the difference between the second and third place. Strange! For the record, Anshika Chonkar and Suhail Sufi were declared 4 and 5 and given Rs 3 lakhs each. I personally felt that Anshika should have been No 3 instead of Manraj but that is my view!

A few thoughts about Myscmme Bosu. We really rooted for her in Season 15 and were sad to see her get eliminated in the Top 7 stage. But this did not in my opinion justify her getting a wild card entry at a late stage of the show when participants had fought hard to reach the Top 10. I recognize the value of a wild card entry in a reality show. If at all they had to have one, they should have given a chance to someone like Shreenidhi Shastry or Sughanda Date from this season. Why go back to the previous season? It is like No 10 of Wimbledon last year being given a wild card to join the top 8 of this year’s Wimbledon!! This defies all logic.

To her credit, Myscmme did sing very well . Here’s my next point: the way she was eliminated should not be done to anyone ever again. Firstly, when they had seven participants, they should have eliminated two and got the Top 5. It was very disappointing to see the way she was eliminated from the Top 6. The judges could have heard all six sing, conferred amongst themselves and then named the Top 5.

Lastly, guys, we enjoy listening to songs but 82 episodes is just too long in this day and age! We felt it was being dragged on and on perhaps because there was no dearth of sponsors!

Congratulations to all the participants, especially the winners. I am sure Jyotirmayee, Tanishk, Manraj, Anshika, and Sulhail will shine in the years to come. My best wishes to all of them!

My Take, reminiscences

Exploring the California Zephyr: A Scenic Journey

Amtrak’s California Zephyr was ready to go at Chicago’s Union Station. This iconic route from Chicago to the West Coast was started in 1949! My wife and I got in like hundreds of other passengers – each finding their own coach and seat, heading for their own destinations. Some were traveling to Mt Pleasant or Burlington, IA while others were going further to Lincoln, NE, or even beyond to Denver, CO or Salt Lake City, UT. Some were traveling all the way to California, getting off at Sacramento, for example or like us going to the very last stop, Emeryville in the Bay Area of California.

This train has one of the longest routes in the North American continent. It covers 2438 miles ( 3924 km) across 7 states in a journey of over 52 hours with an average speed of 55 miles per hour. Check out this map in Wikipedia which shows the route of the Zephyr.

As the clock moved towards 2.00 pm we heard the last call for passengers to board the train. An official in the uniform of the Amtrak Train Conductor sang out, ” All aboard the California Zephyr”. Shortly after, our train powered by 4200 horsepower Siemens ALC 42 Charger diesel electric locomotives began it’s long journey. The Superliner Sightseeing Lounge with its glass dome roof was a stand out feature. We could sit here and enjoy the scenery as we sped past.

We crossed a lot of farmland then crossed the mighty Mississippi River before reaching Galesburg, IL. Later that night, at nearly midnight, we stopped at Omaha, NE.We woke up next morning near Crescent Valley and Battle Mountain in Nevada to see a beautiful sunrise on the desert.

Pictures we took don’t do justice to the sheer grandeur of the nature in all its magnificence. Later we saw many canyons, craggy hills and miles of desert in Nevada. . After an hour’s stop at Denver, Colorado. we began the climb up the mountains. The browns of the desert gave way to the greens of the mountains. We passed the Colorado River where people were enjoying kayaking and river water rafting. Then we came to the best part of the trip as we saw the majestic snow clad peaks of the Rockies in the distance.

The Zephyr moved into the last lap of its long journey. We passed the lakes in the Sierra Nevada mountains and here again witnessed some very pretty scenes. We passed the 7000 feet high Donner Pass and the lovely Donner Lake- which sight will remain in our minds for long.

The train then began its descent to the sea level of the Bay Area. We saw the waters of the Bay glisten in the late afternoon sun as the Zephyr sped to its final destination, Emeryville, CA. We reached around 4.30 pm a short while ahead of the scheduled arrival.

The food in the Dining Car was much better than we expected. Some people had told us with the best of intentions, that we would be well advised to carry a lot of snacks as the Amtrak food wouldn’t be that good. This advice, we found to our relief, was quite wrong. We had breakfast, lunch and dinner on two days in the dining car and we found the food was pretty good! The Dining Car also presented an opportunity for us to meet fellow passengers and make new friends.

Was 52 hours tn the train too long ? No, it wasn’t- as we had comfortable private sleeper cabins with all the necessary amenities including a washroom en suite. Perhaps pending 52 hours in the chair car would be very tough. But then I am 74 ! All the Amtrak staff were courteous and efficient during our trip, especially Antonio. Tony has spent 29 years of his life doing the job of a coach attendant – and he does it damn well!

My conclusion based on our experience: you need to spend more to really enjoy the long train ride. The views make the journey well worth the cost. The amenities were reasonably good. The staff were helpful and took good care of us.

Pro tip: to get the best views, you should travel on the California Zephyr from Chicago to Emeryville as you get the best views on this route. Emeryville to Chicago- or so we are told- is not that hot as many of the best scenes come during the night when you are asleep in bed!

In The News, My Take

Of Books and Controversies

Mr Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Indian National Congress is the Leader of the Opposition in India’s Lower House of Parliament, the hallowed Lok Sabha, Recently, there was a sensation in the Lok Sabha when Mr Gandhi, whose supporters project him as a youth leader despite his being 56 years old made serious allegations about the ruling Government’s handling of the Galwan Crisis of 2020. He said the allegations were based on the writings of India’s former Chief of Army Staff, General M M Naravane (retd) in his memoirs ” Four Stars Of Destiny”. Initially he said he was quoting from an article in The Caravan. Later he was seen exhibiting a physical copy of Gen Naravane’s book. Interestingly, Penguin Random House India declared categorically that the book had not been published! Apparently the Govt of India has not yet cleared the book manuscript. Rahul Gandhi was seen on television programs saying that General Naravane’s book is published and is available abroad.

From the point of view of an author I must say this: Thanks to Mr Gandhi, millions who had not heard about General Naravane”s book- have now heard about it- and how! As of now, it remains to be seen in what form or shape the book will be officially published. I am sure Penguin Random House India will reap a rich harvest from this book as will General Naravane whenever it is finally published!

General Naravane’s book is not the first- nor will it be the last -book to stir up a controversy. Some books have been controversial. Some have been banned. Some have been controversial and banned!!

Over the decades, many books have been banned in India by ruling Governments. I came across this interesting blog post recently in The Himalayan Writing Retreat –“10 Books Banned In India- To Read or Not To Read? ” .

I had heard of some of them, of course, like “The Satanic Verses” by Salman Rushdie. The Government of India, banned the book in 1988, when Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister. You may recall how Sir Salman ( Mr Rushdie was knighted in 2007) was attacked in New York in 2022 -decades after the book was first published! . He spoke about his recollections of that day in a BBC interview in 2025.

Mr Rahul Gandhi’s mentioning General Naravane’s to be published book in Parliament – in a move to attack the “failures” of the ruling Government in dealing with the Chinese perhaps boomeranged on him. The gist of the allegation is that the Govt and Prime Minister Modi was ambiguous in his direction during the crisis. A feeling was sought to be created that the Army Chief felt let down due to a lack of clear direction. The Govt defended itself by saying that approval was given to the Army Chief to act as he deemed fit. The Prime Minister cannot be expected to act like a platoon commander on the ground.

The Parliament ruckus had two interesting-but perhaps unintended – side effects. The first is that a new generation- millions of Indian youth fed largely on social media – is hungry to know how the Congress dealt with such crises in the past. They have heard about the 1962 debacle in the hands of the Chinese in 1962 from their grandparents. They want to know in a crisp conducive to social media manner what actually happened way back in the early 1960s.

The second is that for more serious readers- several books that are based on events on the Indo-China War of 1962 are getting a new lease of life and a huge boost in the bargain. It is well settled that many published books were highly critical of the failures of the then ruling Congress Government of Jawaharlal Nehru. He was Rahul Gandhi’s great-grandfather.

I have read books like “The War That Wasn’t” by Shiv Kunal Verma; “The Battle of Rezang La” by Kulpreet Yadav; and “JKF’s Forgotten Crisis: Tibet, the CIA & The Sino-Indian War” by Bruce Riedel, to mention but a few. Every author has written of how those days were characterised by poor strategic vision and policies, total lack of preparedness, and oscillating between bravado on one day and abject surrender on another. These led to India’s defeat at the hands of the Chinese. India’s image ( and that of Mr Nehru in particular) took a brutal beating in the eyes of our own citizens if not the whole world. What stood out was the bravery and valour of poorly equipped Indian Army troops fighting against great odds and exhibiting immense courage in most cases.

In The News, My Take

Remembering A Legend: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

On January 23, we paid our respects to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, whom I consider one of India’s greatest leaders on his 129th birth anniversary. Naturally there were many articles /podcasts/interviews posted on this day about Netaji and the impact his leadership had on India’s freedom struggle. As a keen student of history, I read most of them with avid interest. I would like to share some which caught my attention.

In this Press Conference,, Sudhanshu Trivedi, Rajya Sabha member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) elaborated on the reasons why the British finally decided to leave India just after World War II. The chief reason – their confidence in the Indian men who served in the Indian Armed Forces was not as strong as before. This change started when Netaji Subhas Bose led the Azad Hind Fauj or Indian National Army since July 1943. By 1945, though the Allies had defeated Hitler’s Nazi Germany, Japan and Italy to won the Second World War, Britain was a spent force. Many – even amongst the Allies- believe had it not been for the economic and technological power of the United States and the massive manpower of the USSR, the war would have gone on for many more years.

The British feared they would not be able to control a mass revolt of troops in India. The mutinies of some units of the Royal Indian Navy and the Indian Army in 1946 came as the last straw. Britain decided to quit India. The decision to quit India was really not triggered – as is often believed – by the Quit India movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi in 1942.

It was equally interesting to hear India’s senior most military leader, General Anil Chauhan, the Chief Of Defence Staff speak about Netaji. In his address at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, he lauded Netaji as a classic military leader with strategic vision. I particularly liked the point that Netaji led by example. His dramatic escape from India in January 1941, an arduous journey to Germany and his return to Asia by sea, travelling in a German U-boat and later a Japanese submarine have become part of the Netaji legend. In contrast, I could not find – in all these decades since Independence- any account of India’s leading freedom fighters like Gandhiji or Nehruji, facing British bullets or lathis at the head of a freedom fighters. They were arrested many times but were confined in comfort as political prisoners. Indeed, Nehruji wrote his most famous book, ” The Discovery of India” while in Ahmednagar Jail.

This article in The Organiser traces how Netaji broke away from the Gandhi-Nehru Congress way back in 1939 as they disagreed on the way to get freedom from the British. It is often said that history is written from the point of view of the victors and not the vanquished. General Chauhan mentions this too in his talk referred to earlier.

I wonder if the youth of India know of Netaji’s achievements as they have not got the publicity they deserve. On October 21, 1943 he announced the formation of the Azad Hind Government while in Singapore at the height of the Second World War. This was the first Government in exile to be formed for India. As many as 11 countries accord recognition to Free India. He hoisted the flag of Free India in the Andaman and Nicobar islands in December 1943. Netaji visualised and implemented the printing of currency, hoisted the National Flag in December 1943, and gave the new country the anthem of the Azad Hind Fauj.

Looking at distant events as we now do in 2026, we can only admire and pay homage to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. He was undoubtably one of India’s greatest sons and arguably the first Prime Minister of Free India. Jai Hind!!

In The News, My Take

Good Bye To Flying Non-Stop From BLR-SFO

A news item in LiveMint a few days ago grabbed my attention. Effective March 1, 2026, Air India’s flight AI 175 which took you non- stop from Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport to San Francisco would no longer be in operation. Figures indicate that in the last year nearly 1,50,000 used these non-stop flights. This was a popular flight for techies and business executives as it connected two major tech hubs. It also was popular for old folk like me, as it helped us skip a layover to catch a connecting flight.

Before this non-stop flight came into being, we used to travel via Europe. I remember the stopovers at London’s Heathrow airport, or at the Charles de Gaulle at Paris, or the Schiphol at Amsterdam. The break was handy in the old days – we could go out and stretch our legs. Later however, particularly after Covid, things changed dramatically. The security processes made us go through numerous checks all over again. Often it meant moving from one terminal to another- in Heathrow, for example, this involved a short train trip as well.

With these changed circumstances, Air India’s non-stop flight came as a big boon, especially for older folk. I recall reading with awe back in January 2021, that an Air India non-stop flight from San Francisco to Bengaluru was flown by an all women team of pilots. who created history by flying over the North Pole. This feat was indeed rare for those days.

Living in more affluent times than we did in our childhood, it is not surprising to see many of the 35 seats in the business class occupied by Indian elders flying out to be with their children! It has been our pleasure to have flown this several times- to and from San Francisco. I would like to give a shout out to the cabin crew of Air India. In our experience, they were always polite and efficient. Many went the extra mile to make us comfortable. On many occasions, the cabin crew helped us set up and retract the flat bed.

Another aspect of flying with Air India which we enjoyed so much was the food. This suited us more than that of other airlines. All that was served was invariably of a high standard, served with impeccable style. The entertainment channels on offer helped us pass time by seeing movies during the long flight of nearly 17 hours from Bengaluru to San Francisco. After all, the cities were 8400 miles or 14,000 kilometres apart.

Air India had cited operational reasons for discontinuing the BLR-SFO non-stop. Even their long range B777- 200 LR aircraft could not fly the new routes without re-fuelling. Not flying over Pakistan and Ukraine were the main reasons for the longer routes. It is reported that over time Air India will move its hub for flights to the US to Delhi. After March 1, 2026 we will need to find other options to reach our destination. Based on our personal experience over the years, I for one, will definitely miss the AI 175 and AI 176 non-stop flights.

I hope someday they will be reintroduced. The sooner the better.

In The News, My Take

In Homage: ASI Shri Tukaram Omble, Ashok Chakra (Posthumous).

A few days ago, on November 26, my mind compulsively went back to the dreadful events that engulfed Mumbai – India’s commercial capital- on that day 17 years ago! As you would know, starting November 26, 2008 the city was in the grip of panic amidst concerted planned attacks by a group of Lashkar -e- Taiba terrorists from Pakistan.

In my blog post of November 27, 2020, I had recalled the tragic chain of events that took place after the terrorists landed in Mumbai in the evening of November 26, 2008.

Another 5 years have gone by since then. We remember with sorrow 166 innocents of different nationalities, mostly Indian who were killed and more than 500 who were severely injured. These didn’t take place in one place. The battle with the terrorists went on till November 29. It was centred in different locations like the Taj Palace, The Oberoi, Chabad House, Cama and Albless Hospital, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus of the Indian railways, the road leading to Girgaum Chowpatty etc.

There were many heroes in those chilling days. Many were nameless: taxi drivers who rushed injured to hospitals; Mumbaikars who sheltered passers by during the shootings on the roads; the constabulary of the Mumbai Police who were facing an enemy the likes of which they had never face before- in terms of quality of equipment or the indoctrinated ferocity of their attacks; the staff of the Taj and Oberoi Hotels who put this lives at risk to save their guests; and of course, the Naval commandos (the MARCOS) and the National Security Guard NSG who were better equipped to fight the terrorists.

Some were named too: like Vishnu Zende , the train announcer at CST whose timely announcements led thousands of people in the vast station to safety;

In my opinion, by far the bravest deed came from 54 year old Asst Sub Inspector Tukaram Omble of the Mumbai Police. He had joined the Mumbai Police in 1991 after serving in the Signals Regiment of the Indian Army. It was Omble’s sheer bravery that enabled Ajmal Kasab – one of the terrorists- to be captured alive. Kasab was armed with the dreaded AK 47. Despite this, Omble physically hung on to Kasab though he took many bullets in his chest He clung on till his colleagues overpowered Kasab. Omble was awarded a richly deserved Ashok Chakra posthumously.

We came to know later that the terrorists ( all from Pakistan) came wearing “kalavas” traditionally worn by Hindus and had IDs with Hindu names to confuse the police. There was also a bizarre claim by a few that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was behind the terror attack. The book ” 26/11: RSS Ki Sazish” was launched by veteran Congress leader Digvijay Singh.

Thanks to Omble’s bravery Kasab was captured alive. This ultimately led us to the truth behind the dastardly attacks.

Years have flown past, but we remember Omble with awe and respect. We can never forget what he singe-handedly did in the early hours of November 27, 2008.

In The News, My Take

From IT to Music: Sunil Koshy’s Inspiring Journey

It takes a lot of courage to leave a well-paying job in India’s much vaunted Information technology (IT) sector and strike out on your own. More so when your passion is not even remotely connected with the core work you do for a living. Sunil Koshy was working for Intel when he found the urge to follow his passion for music too strong to resist. Overcoming the inevitable initial hesitation, he decided to take the plunge, as it were.

He zoned in on an interesting idea. Millions of us, the world over, sing in the comfort and privacy of our bathrooms. However, we are too shy or scared to sing in front of others leave alone a sizeable audience of strangers. His start up, enticingly christened” From Mug To Mike” (or FMTM for short) sought to teach such people to break out of their comfort zones and muster the courage to sing- for their friends and family, if not for total strangers.

Over the years, FMTM has grown from strength to strength as has Sunil’s versatility. He is a music composer, director, vocal coach, singer- and a successful entrepreneur. In this, standing shoulder to shoulder with him is his wife and biggest supporter : Co- Founder: Archana Hallikeri.

They have developed different types of workshops of varying duration. These help people pursue a hobby, that is often relegated to the back burner out of fear, namely singing. You can catch glimpses of their work in their Instagram account.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Sunil for the past few years. More than my describing him, you may like to hear him tell his own story! By happy co-incidence, I came across this interesting podcast which Vanitha of Changepreneurs did on Sunil’s birthday, August 2. Happy listening!

My take aways from Sunil’s story: 1. It calls for a certain amount of courage to buck the trend and venture into unchartered territories. 2. Following your passion is not just a catch word or a fad. A lot of hard work and perseverance is required to make a success of your endeavour. 3. When you succeed, the satisfaction you get is unmeasurable.

I am sure Sunil will agree! He has set a high benchmark not only for himself but for other young people who may be motivated to emulate him. It augurs well for the future of our country when we have role models like Sunil Koshy!

In The News, My Take

Remembering The Emergency

On June 25, 2025, some five weeks ago, I don’t know how many of you remembered June 25, 1975 – the day the infamous Emergency was declared in India 50 years ago! All of us old enough to do so remembered the Declaration of Emergency by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s Congress Government on that day. More than the declaration day itself, we still vividly remember the horrors perpetrated during the Emergency which ran from June 25, 1975 to March 21, 1977.

For those who have no idea what went on all those decades ago, this Factsheet released by the Press Information Bureau throws considerable light on those dark days. All of us were affected, some more than others. Some of us were lucky to come away unscathed. A few images still haunt me after all these years. The first is of George Fernandes shackled like a criminal. The second is of actress Snehalatha Reddy who died a mere 5 days after her release from prison. The third is men being forced to undergo sterilisation.

While there were many acts that went against the principles of a free democracy, the sterilisation campaign was by far the most heinous. At that time, I worked for a cement company in a remote part of the country. One day the Headmaster of the School our Company ran for the benefit of the employees’ children was considerable agitated. He said he had received orders – verbal of course- from the relevant Government authorities to marshal all the male staff of the school to a public hospital. The reason for this was clear. They were to be sterilised as that Officer had a target to achieve! Luckily, this was not a Government run School though it was recognised by the Government. It received no funds from the Government. This and the firm diplomatic nudge by our senior management enabled the Headmaster and his staff escape a fate -inevitable for the less fortunate.

I laugh to myself when I read reports in the newspapers in which opposition leaders accuse the current Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being fascist! Fascists like Adolf Hitler carried out over 4,000,000 sterilisations during 12 years of Nazi rule. In our 1975-77 Emergency, 1.07 crore sterilisations took place. Written as numerals that is: 10,700,000.