O Captain! My Captain!

An open letter to my current favorite cricket player and captain

I belong to that generation of people who have grown up watching and admiring Sachin Tendulkar. I have seen those days when people used to switch off their television once Sachin used to get out. Gone are those days, but people still look for someone to put their trust on. They want someone to carry on their burden of expectations. In the last decade or so you have pulled on weight and carried their expectations. And you did that beautifully. As a cricketer you have already achieved a lot. As a captain too, no one else can be very promising. You report card is still very much positive.

I say this to every haters of yours. For a man who has captained India for almost a decade, he certainly deserves more respect. The haters demand consistency in every performance, winning every matches. I demand from them consistency in their support. Dhoni, you see it's tough to grow in India with all the expectations. You have faced various adversity in the last decade. Not to mention tough oppositions in England, Australia or South Africa, alien conditions Down Under, lack of quality fast bowlers in the team. The real adversity you have faced is the people of India. Having won so many trophies, people expect you to win even more. Nothing wrong in that, but the only thing which matters and delights the haters is the fact that you are the only captain to lose a series against Bangladesh.

People doesn't know what it takes to be the Indian cricket captain. They complain that you give chances to the undeserving. Making Rohit and Dhawan hit purple patches, Rahane to have confidence in his batting, Shami to be the leader of the pace attack. I want to remind them these were not CSK players.

People define your wicketkeeping poor. I won't argue because you have already clarified while taking a flying catch that it was nothing but a fluke. A street smart keeping styles, running out the batsman when the throw is not even 2 meters near the wickets can only be done by you. More than 600 dismissal behind the stumps and yet your keeping is poor?

You have changed your batting style to suit the team. Your helicopter is in the hangar. Yet you do your best to bring laurels for India. Being always present to take the team across the line. Always walking the talk, never asking others what you cannot do yourself. You have gained respect from all across the globe. Only in India where you will find people with short memories and glories to live by.

Not a day passes by without you being compared with other captains of this nation. After having won us so many trophies, memories like the six in the final of the World Cup 2011, Joginder and Ishant bowling in the final matches of the major ICC tournament etched forever, people still complain you are nothing more than lucky. Was it really luck bhaiyya?

People from small town owes a lot to you. You have given them confidence to dream high and be a world beater. The day you retired from the Test cricket, was one of the saddest day in my recent times. It was a bolt from the blue. You never gave a hint. You thought for the team, for the new generation, for the new captain. You led by example and left by example. You didn't want a farewell, a glorified memento. You earned the respect of your teammates by setting an example with your own performances and then simply left like silent saint assassin.

One of the earliest saved pictures (1st Test match)

 

Save The Internet

I cried, my team lost

India lost the semi finals of Cricket World Cup, 2015. I am sad but in no way I am shamed. The team gave me enough reasons to be happy.

Those who criticize India now are those who are chronic whiners...those who keep looking for room to blame the National team and some individuals. When our own legends speak high of MSD those who have not played cricket or understood the game well keep pointing fingers against him .. that is foolish and cowardly approach. This is the time we need to support our captain and the team.. a Captain who even refused to visit home to see his new borne baby as he was on national duty.. a captain who was always balanced and focused .. a captain who never complained!!!

It is so easy now a days for these so called experts to question our team on their poor performances, without forgetting that practicing sportsmanship is a lot harder than actually preaching it. Do these morons remember their playing days? If they have conveniently forgotten, it is our duty to give them a reality check.

Dhoni lacked leadership skills need just a gentle reminder, did your uncle score the winning runs in the 2011 world cup? Weren’t you the same bunch who wrote us off before the tournament began? And weren’t you the same bunch who went gaga over we winning seven matches on the trot? Doesn’t that speak a lot about your character? You know fans like me can go on endlessly rubbing it in for questioning our heroes and their commitment. But sadly we have better things to do. Before I end this, seriously ‘Times now’ the nation wants to know “Since when did winning seven consecutive games and having one bad day in office be equivalent to shaming the nation?”

It's a pity that our own country men do not understand and appreciate the importance of Dhoni and go lengths in criticizing and blaming him for anything and everything. Little do they know that in Australia people consider these players in high esteem - Bevan the finisher, Waugh the captain and Gilly the keeper while in India we have all those characteristics combined in one person and that is Dhoni

Yo musulmans ne soyez pas si apologétique

Today I decide to declare my own stand on the major headline that shocked the world.

The attack on Charlie Hebdo which killed 12 people, is a barbaric act of terrorism and a shame on civilization. Without any resevration it is a crime, it is prohibited and it shud be condemned. Islam is a religion of fairness and balance. As we condemn this brutal attack we also at the same time should condemn similar attacks. What's the ruling for killing of innocent children and women in Gaza, Palestine for example. What is happening in Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan? They are attacked by drone. These too are crimes. 12 people dies in the attack, it is a crime, I agree but at the same time we need to look at the bigger picture, thousands of Muslims are being killed in almost all part of the world. We are being too negative, too sorry while condemning these attacks.

If we want to compare apple to apple. Which is more severe in light of Islam? killing of 12 people or insulting, ridiculing the messenger of Allah which includes prophet Muhammad, Jesus, Moses, Abraham and others (peace be upon them)? The later is blasphemy, an act of disbelieving, an act of hatred and attack to the messenger of Allah, religion of Allah, an attack towards Allah himself. Why you Muslims didn't raise your voice against these acts? Why did the presidents, leaders of those countries not condemn these attacks? This is an irony. This needs to be addressed.

Though the abusers of our Prophet deserves punishment, if not here then in the hereafter for sure but can anyone go around and start killing the blasphemers? Does this justify the killing? Answer is simple as NO! It is to be taken up by ruler of state. It should go through a panel of judges and they should pronounce the verdict, not common people like us. Otherwise there will be anarchy and it would be like a jungle rule, uncivilized and should be corrected.

They say it's freedom of speech. I beg to differ. I don't subscribe to the idea that 'Freedom of Expression' entitles the right to ridicule, insult and provoke others. In my opinion, Freedom of expression is a powerful tool that only comes along with responsibility and sensitivity. So while I condemn this terrible act of terrorism, I am sorry but ‘Je Ne Suis Pas Charlie’! I want to be more responsible than Charlie! I am not worried about the feeling of uneasiness, being not worthy of your friendship.

In these countries nothing is freedom of speech except it is against our prophets, against the religion of Allah, against Allah Himself, say whatever you want. If it is against Palestinian, Iraqi, colored people, step on them you are free to go because it is freedom of speech. But dare to say against the Jews, they will put you in jail because it's antisemitism. You have no rights to talk against gays and homo-sexual. Your freedom of speech ends here. Has the publication run cartoons which mocked Holocaust? Did they drew caricature of people falling over from the WTC making fun of 9/11 victims (I am glad they didn't)? I don't think so.

What nerve!

As a Muslim, I'm Fed Up With the Hypocrisy of the Free Speech Fundamentalists. It was shocking to see leaders (read fools) of different countries in condemning this brutal attacks. What irony! What contradiction! It's nothing but enmity to Islam I would say. Why have you been so silent on the glaring double standards? Did you not know that Charlie Hebdo sacked the veteran French cartoonist Maurice Sinet in 2009 for making an allegedly anti-Semitic remark? Were you not aware that Jyllands-Posten, the Danish newspaper that published caricatures of the Prophet in 2005, reportedly rejected cartoons mocking Christ because they would "provoke an outcry" and proudly declared it would "in no circumstances publish Holocaust cartoons"?
But, yes we to have our own demands. Let's not be too apologetic. Apparently, it isn't just Muslims who get offended.

I am here to clarify the saying, "How weak that faith would be that got shaken because of simple cartoons". But my dear friends those cartoons were not just simple cartoons. We do love our mother, we revered our mother so much so that we can't even tolerate if someone abuses our mother, leave aside of portraying her into offensive cartoons. So will it be acceptable to us if someone says "Our love for our mother is so weak that it gets shaken merely because of few foul words (directed to their mothers)?" No, right?

Let's be clear. I do condemn the attack, I am not proud to be affiliated to them, these people do not represent Islam, they do not follow what our prophet prescribed for us. But I do have my doubts here, whether they were paid by other sources to tarnish the reputation of Islam because Islam do not advocate such coward attacks. The attacks created a furore among other anti-Islamic countries. They reproduced those cartoons, so did it serve Islam or was it against Islam? That's where my doubts are.

I'm writing to you to make a simple request: please stop!

http://www.katibin.fr/2015/01/10/carte-des-actes-islamophobes-au-lendemain-de-laffaire-charlie-hebdo/

And now after three and half years in Mu Sigma

When I joined Mu Sigma three and half years back (yes you read the numbers right), these were my thoughts:

 - I am in a good place with good people
 - I like maths (not sure about love part) but they also ask me to code
 - Man! this is too hectic, I don't know if I could survive
 - There's too much expectation, they raise the bar everytime, i don't know if I can cope up
 - I am shy, not too outspoken, I don't know if I could live with this here
 - Kolkata! I love my place....I can't be far away from it for a very long time

But guess what Mu SIgma accepted me the way I am and I reciprocated the same...
19th December, 2014 I got a mail and read this and asked my team to read to be sure of:

"It gives me great pleasure in informing you that you have been promoted to the role of Associate Manager"...

Yes, I am unable to believe it still...the three and half year journey reverberates in my subconscious mind....

All praise to almighty Allah, I feel happy and I want to share my happiness with you...Knowingly or unknowingly your prayers are with me and it works... Khair to everyone!!!! :)