Nobody's child, growing wild!

THE ROOST

There was once, many years ago, there was a spate when many of my relatives had given up on their motherland, turned their back on Malaysia and started looking around for greener pastures. I wondered how Mother Malaysia would feel to see one by one, her children, after years of nurturing them, after growing so big and strong, feel compelled to fly away from their roost. Like a proud mother seeing her kids having a mind of their own, she must be immersed in a bitter-sweet feeling.

Like a flight of swallows,

you came stocks and barrels,

from Swatow, Coimbatore, Minangkabau,

Looking for peace of mind,piece of pie,

for that,

you scaled the high seas and brine.

You were hungry; I fed your soul,

you had shivers; I showed you warmth.

you were homeless; I gave you home.

you were stateless; I was your hope.

Under the yellow umbrella,

and a piece of cloth,

you had dignity, camaraderie,

a history, a legacy,

an emblem, an anthem.

The colours to spill your crimson.

Now that you have wings,

you can expand your span,

once an ugly duckling,

majestically now a swan,

I remain your dodo,

Flightless, lifeless, brainless, valueless,

And cared less.

I am not up to your mark

not up to your spark,

you want to fly,

to reach high up in the sky.

you peacocked to new horizons,

no future, you cite as reasons,

you curse me,you betray me

still, I don't call it treason.

A summer love, a puppy love,

the morning after, the hangover,

a one-night stand,

a nightmare to be got over?

I have my desires too,

to progress like the red dot,

to shine like the rising sun too.

a tiger, not a chicken to the rot.

I stay regal, guarding,

patient, majestic,

hawking over the nest

providing a haven for the swallow for the summer.

What do Ke Huy Quan and Michelle Yeoh have in common? Besides standing tall and hoisting their Oscars in the recent Academy Award ceremony, both spent a brief time in Malaysia. For the ignoramus, a little Ke Huy Quan appeared as 'Short Round', Indiana Jones' fast-talking sidekick in the 1984 'Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'. 

Now Ke is all big and strong and appeared in the supporting role in 'Everywhere everything all at once!'.

Michelle Yeoh, as we already know, hails from Ipoh. She wanted to be a ballerina, but an injury prevented her progress. Like most Malaysians of that era (and now, too), many qualified Malaysians who lost out on the New Economic Policy are left with Hobson's choice but to pursue their ambitions outside the country. Malaysia is no place for a ballerina to prosper too. A place in a beauty pageant, sure, as it is forbidden to the majority. So, Hong Kong and Holywood were where Ms Yeah had to be to shine. Now, this country wants to bask in glory for the accolade as if it had everything  to do. Maybe it was the main push factor for millions to explore green pastures and hence, attributed to a massive brain drain.

Ke Huy Quan probably had multiple brushes with death before fame and fortune finally made their much-anticipated appearance. Once, at his birthplace in Vietnam when the family had to split up. The father left with half of the family, and the mother with the other half towards Malaysia, possibly aboard Hai Hong. Defying death again from rough seas and the risk of being shot at by the then Prime Minister, the family reunited in the USA a year later. 

It is not that citizens do not want to contribute to the nation. It is not that they do not want to be part of the nation. Paradoxically, it is the nation that does want intelligent citizens. They do not fit into their social engineering programme. They want obedient subjects who would dance to their drum beats and the fiddle of the ruling party. There is no place for slaves to question their masters! Michelle Yeoh and Quan should thank Malaysia for being inhospitable and help them to push to the limit and explore what they truly are made of.

A clip from 'Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.'

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Like bees drawn to nectar!

Jatt vs IELTS (Punjabi; 2018)
Director: Devi Dutt

It is a problem in most developing countries. The generation around the country's independence bent over backwards to provide for the family. They felt contented to be self-sufficient and to ensure their offspring were not deprived of the things they missed. With the advent of widespread dissemination of information and systemic glorification of modern living, the youngsters just turned out pompous and sluggards.

This is a universal problem experienced by societies in upcoming post-independent Asian nations. The younger generation cannot wait to buzz off from their birth country. They feel they can only find their true potential away from the toxic environments enveloping their nations. The West, it seems, gave them the validation and liberation they needed. 

Modern education provides equal opportunities for all. The end result of this is women performing way better in all academic indices. 

About twenty years ago, it seems the state of Punjab was the most prominent food supplier to the rest of the country. It also used to be the biggest revenue earner in terms of taxes. All over the years, its position has undergone a significant slide. Social problems have grown. Alcoholism and drug addiction amongst the young has skyrocketed. Punjab blames Pakistan for the maleficent dropping of dope over the border via air balloons and drones.

Komatagaru Maru

Reports of young Punjabis smuggled across the European borders are no secret. News of them being made to work in slave-like conditions in Italian vineyards and Portugal is nothing new. Canada has been a hotbed for Punjabi immigration since the late 1800s, amidst much hostility. Canadian hostile stance against Asian migration of the 20th century and The Komagata Maru incident in 1914 when Punjabis were refused disembarkation and were turned away still stays fresh in everyone's mind. 

These days, with the friendly attitude shown by Trudeau and his government, it seems that every Punjabi harbours a secret dream to be a Canadian citizen. For that, applicants need to score well on an English proficiency test named International English Language Testing System (IELTS).

This movie combines all of the above to depict the sad state of affairs in a light comedy. The main character, Jassi, is a wealthy farmer's 'good for nothing' son who spends all his time gallivanting here and there on his motorbike. He abhors the idea of continuing his father's occupation. Much to the chagrin of his father, Jaggi wants to complete his IELTS exams and migrate to Canada. The problem is that he is not the sharpest tool in the box. He learns of the idea of marrying a girl who had got a visa to Canada and joining her later with a spousal visa. The plan backfires when the wife remarries in Canada.

One would expect the film to end with the protagonist having a realisation to stay back in Punjab, develop some kind of patriotism and resolve to be a farmer. But, no. He still manages to go to Canada, albeit by other means! 

(P.S. On a side note, Trudeau's government tried to win the Punjabi hearts by apologising for the Komatgaru Maru debacle, having many Sikh ministers in key cabinet positions and expressing their undivided support in the recent farmers protest. Now the tables are turned around. Truck drivers, many of whom were of Punjabi descent, have started protesting against the country's Covid mandate and brought Ottawa to a standstill. Justin Trudeau, meanwhile, is said to have been taken away for protective custody!)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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The Roost

https://mybukz.tumblr.com/post/175292906152/poem-the-roost-by-farouk-gulsara

Credit: FB group: Rawthers

Penang circa mid-1960 

There was once a time, a few years ago, there was a spate when many of my relatives had given up on their motherland, turned their back on Malaysia and started looking around for greener pastures. I wondered how Mother Malaysia would feel to see one by one, her children, after years of nurturing them, after growing so big and strong, feel compelled to fly away from their roost. Like a proud mother seeing her kids having a mind of their own, she must be immersed in a kind of bitter-sweet feeling.


Like a flight of swallows,
you came all stocks and barrels,
from Swatow,
from Coimbatore,
Looking for a peace of mind,
you scaled the high seas and brine.

You were hungry, I fed your soul,
you had shivers, I showed you warmth.
you were homeless, I gave you home.
you were stateless, I was your hope.

Under the yellow umbrella,
and a piece of cloth,
you had dignity, camaraderie, integrity.
a history, a legacy,
an emblem, an anthem.
The colours to spill your crimson.

Now that you have wings,
you can expand your span,
once an ugly duckling,
majestically now a swan,
I remain your dodo,
Flightless, lifeless, brainless, valueless,
And cared less.

I am not up to your mark
not up to your spark,
no path to walk.
you want to fly,
to reach high up in the sky.
you peacocked to new horizons,
no future, you cite as reasons,
you curse me, you betray me
still, I don't call it treason.

A summer love, a puppy love,
the morning after, the hangover,
a one night stand,
a nightmare to be got over?

I have my desires too,
To progress like the red dot,
And shine like the rising sun too.
Not just a chicken feed to the rot.
I stay regal, guarding,
patient, majestic,
hawking over the nest
providing a haven for the crows and the rest.

-FG-

 https://asok22.wixsite.com/real-lesson 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

We are here!

Gowri (2016)
Author: V G Kumar Das


As our leaders frantically try their level best to rewrite history as they seem fit, to satisfy their personal agendas, there is no better time than now for books like this one to come out. In fact, books of this kind are long overdue. 

Family narrations of this nature must surely be a regular feature in most Malaysian Indian family circles. In fact, it is the story of economic immigrants the world over. The push factor drives a brave group of fortune seekers to go beyond their shores to explore greener pastures. Accommodating to the demands of their new found lands, with the trust in God Almighty, these new sojourners persevere. 

Losing everything and gaining nothing by becoming sluggards, they know that hard work is the only way to unshackle themselves from the clutches of poverty. Inadvertently, their labour pays back in their and their offspring's standard of living. The incidental beneficiary of all these is the development of the nation-state.

'Gowri' is a dedication of love from a doting son to his mother. The author had to grow overnight to adulthood to be the de facto 'head' of the family after the demise of his father when he was mere seventeen. He, in great details, tries to trace his immediate relatives and puts the records straight for the descendants of Madam Gowri Panicker to know where they came from, the labour of the family in establishing themselves and exerting themselves vigorously as lawful citizens of this country. 

Treading through thick and thin, from 1939, along with the history of the country, through World War 2, the communist insurgency and the dizzying era after Malayan Independence, the family, can proudly say, "they were there!"; from the inception of Malaysia to its current state.

Another recurring theme in most Malaysian Indian family's success story is education. Its importance cannot be overemphasised here too. Gowri, who had the misfortune of being deprived of higher level education because of some family issues, understood its importance. She ensured that her children had the opportunities for what she had missed. She herself was a role model for her kids as she self-taught English and Tamil and was a voracious reader.

It is enlightening to see how siblings of the bygone era sacrificed for the wellbeing of their siblings. In this fast-changing world of self-centeredness, I wonder if this virtue would still hold in time to come.

The generation before us was definitely a resilient lot. They encountered adversities headlong with calculated risk and with the trust in God. It is incredible how the belief in the divine forces can make one stronger beyond their own expectations. Rather than thinking and overthinking, sometimes putting the responsibility on the celestial bodies and entering combat wholeheartedly allays uncertainties in life. If you win, you thank God; if you fail, you accept that it was not meant to be.

Life is an unpredictable journey. There are no distinct paths to follow. The road least followed could open new frontiers, but conversely, it could be your coup de grâce! Accepting that the Gods are silent, Man looks for other telltale signs. Astrology and signs of Nature are taken as guides; chirping of lizards, fluttering of eyes, sneezing and chiming of clocks all denote hidden messages for us to consider!

The story of Gowri is the story of her new Motherland. Just like how Gowri and her family grew their roots deep into Malaysia, Malaysia also prospered in tandem. Like her children who spread their wings to the four corners of the world, the pride of the country flew majestically over the globe via the hard work of the immigrant population like Gowri who decided to call this country home and of their descendants who were willing to toil, sweat and bleed for this nation.

Running through this biography, one gets the feeling as though the ultimate question about our existence may be answered. The dilemma whether our presence here on Earth is to savour the fruit of our previous favourable karmas or to be a testbed for future births. The answer is neither; it is to propel our kith and kins forward, one notch higher than the generation before them. Period. 

 https://asok22.wixsite.com/real-lesson 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.