Rajdeep Sardesai on his relationship with Arnab Goswami, and other anecdotes from his book

For Scroll.in, 3 November 2014
Journalist Rajdeep Sardesai’s book, 2014: The Election That Changed India, is a gripping account of the general elections that made Narendra Modi India’s prime minister. Among other things, the book reflects on the role and the use of the media in the elections.

Here are a few anecdotes about the media from the book.

1. On Arnab Goswami: That the two star news anchors are not on good terms is well known. A profile of Goswami in The Caravan magazine two years ago had said, “Goswami had worked under Sardesai for almost a decade, and despised him so deeply that his son had made a charming drawing of Goswami triumphing over his former boss. Goswami is a dedicated father, and he proudly displayed it in his office.” The coldness between the two when they came together on stage in June this year was noticeable.

Continue reading “Rajdeep Sardesai on his relationship with Arnab Goswami, and other anecdotes from his book”

Why Janata 3.0 is doomed to failure

For Scroll.in, 12 November 2014

First they came together against Indira Gandhi’s Emergency in 1977. Then they came together to defeat Rajiv Gandhi in 1989. On those occasions it had taken support of the Bhartiya Janata Party (known as Jan Sangh in ’77) to oppose the Congress. Now, India’s hoary socialists want to come together once again to oppose the Bhartiya Janata Party. Continue reading “Why Janata 3.0 is doomed to failure”

Politicians and their birthdays

I think very highly of Jawahar Lal, but there’s something megalomaniac about politicians and their birthdays…

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(Click on the images to enlarge.)

Which is not to say Nehru’s investment in children was insincere or cyncila like Modi’s communication strategies…

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A prime minister celebrating his birthday as children’s day is for me, a lot less problematic than a president celebrating his birthday as Teacher’s day.

Chacha Modi should abolish Teachers’ Day

Photo credit: NarendraModi.in
Photo credit: NarendraModi.in

For Scroll.in on 3 September 2014

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan became India’s second President in May 1962. Some months later, some of his friends, admirers and sycophants told him that they would like to celebrate his birthday, which fell on September 5. That was when the scholar-president said that he’d prefer if it were instead celebrated as Teachers’ Day. After all, Radhakrishnan had blazed a path as a respected teacher, holding positions in several prestigious institutions, including Madras Presidency College, the University of Calcutta, Oxford and Benaras Hindu University. Continue reading “Chacha Modi should abolish Teachers’ Day”