The story of India

"The story of India" is a 6 part BBC series first telecast in 2007 commemorating 60 years of India/Pakistan independence from the British. The show is a must watch for every Indian. Michael Wood, the narrator and also the author of a book by the same name provides glimpses of the people of different ages in the history of the subcontinent, their culture, belief system, idealogy, economy, political framework, military and even trade relations with foreign lands in a time period spanning 5000 years. The enthusiasm with which he explores the vast land, mixing and mingling with the local population, experiencing the smells, tastes and sounds of India and the child like awe with which he listens to the stories that the locals have to say to him are infectious.

I was a lover of history in my schooling days. Infact I still am. The history that I have been exposed to in my formative years in school have led me to accept as a fact that our present identity as "Indians" was given to us by the British and it is because of them that we are one nation today. But many great empires spanning the vast majority of the subcontinent, precursors of modern multi-cultural India, headed by enlightened rulers have existed throughout history and their founding and guiding principles have been what we consider the cornerstone for the largest democracy on earth : secularism, peace and universal brotherhood. It was an invigorating experience to take that journey once again through the rich and intriguing history of India, to take a fresh look at what our roots were, what we currently are and where we are headed. 

Here is the link to the Google video 

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=the+story+of+india&emb=0&aq=f#q=the%20story%20of%20india&emb=0&aq=f&dur=3

The series is also going to be telecast in PBS this month in the US.

Watch and experience for yourself the most fascinating tale in history, The story of India.

peace out.

And so it begins.....

It has been 2 years and 6 months since I opened this blogspot account. It was a time when blogging was beginning to gain prominence among my peers. Even though I badly wanted to try my hand at it, I had never written a diary, journal or anything along the same lines previously in my life. Then I moved to US for my graduate studies and my urge to pen down my thoughts slowly deteriorated partly due to lack of time and partly due to inaction on my part. I always take time to contribute, be it a simple discussion or a major debate just to make sure I have listened to everyone's views and assimilated as much information as possible before making my case for or against the issue at hand. The idea was always to be diplomatic but the essence of such exercise is lost if one does not truly express his/her opinion and just tries to appease everyone. To make one's opinion known to everyone is to have provided a new perspective on the issue at hand. 

For the past 4 years I have been closely following a number of bloggers whom I shall tag in this page very soon. I could clearly see them evolve as writers as time went by and also witnessed how this platform had been modified from a place where people just rant to a forum for forming collective opinion and bartering constructive ideas. Some of the blogs have served as looking glasses through which I had the opportunity to see and learn different people, cultures and perspectives. I had realized that the more people share the more the world has to see and learn from. So here goes the page where I intend to rant/share/criticize/celebrate and let you guys know my take on anything and everything. The seed that I had sown years back has taken roots and so it begins...

peace out .