Monday, June 22, 2015

Modi's year in office


He is lying prone on the mat,

And striking classic yoga poses;

With a million cheering him on,

Of course, impeccably dressed!

 

He takes the US by storm,

Cheered by Desis at Madison Square,

A million are always turned out,

To cheer the ultimate showman on!

 

He speaks in quotes and aphorisms,

Perfect for the age of twitter;

He knows the art of byte-sized sound,

For a world that can't focus longer!

 

He shares the stage with world leaders,

In their home, visiting their town;

Hosts visiting ones on jhulas,

In his own beloved home town!

 

His ministers form a circle,

Whose role is to point to the center;

Lest anyone still misses it,

He's the one dressed in most splendor!

 

Each event of his is so well-timed,

Though he thought of it years in advance;

He won't let any good thing go,

For lack of timing, unheard, unsung!

 

He's got the teams to project him,

For any event, the right platform!

Laser shows during the elections,

Followed by one show every month!

 

He knows the art of projection,

Of waiting, and of deception;

With no family to distract him,

There's also the aura of renunciation!

 

He keeps his enemies at bay,

In different Machiavellian ways;

They cheer: those who wish to gain,

The others' balls: he holds in his hands!

 

Enemies have been known to vanish,

All but friends, decimated;

A man you  can't antagonize,

Either you cheer, or stay silent!

 

He has an event for the moment,

And several scandals held in reserve;

To release when the time is right,

When he's in trouble, or before the polls!

 

From the gullies of Gujarat he came,

To storm the walls of Lutyens' Delhi;

Over every person he looms,

Who stare in awe or cower in fear!

 

Who knows if this is for the good,

Or will lead to anything better?

A megalomaniac come to save us,

Or a mahiavellian deliverer?

Thursday, June 4, 2015

The Maggi madness

The world has lost it, it is collective madness.

They are saying Maggi without the lead is good!

What they are testing for is lead, so that is the focus,

With which everyone is so obsessed.

 

The problem is with how it's made, not lead.

It has to cook fast, since it is 'instant';

It has to last long, since it is sent

To all corners of the land – it may take months;

It has to taste good, for kids to want it,

So chemicals are fixed for it to reach the 'bliss point';

It needs to be loaded to the brim with salt and other things,

It's one or all of: fat, salt and sugar; before putting into a packet;

And many more deadly carcinogens, which are packed in,

Called preservatives, enhancers, QBz11 or such cute names.

They start with grain, god knows of what quality,

Made to flour, all nutrients removed;

Then based on a formula tweaked in their research labs,

All the other ingredients are blended in.

Invariably, the process involves high heat,

And also killing anything that lives,

For living things in there will make it spoil,

And rot before it reaches the shelves.

 

Eat only food that spoils, should be the motto,

But eat them before they spoil;

In chasing after lead, we are being made fools of,

By the same people who claim to safeguard us;

They will test it again, and lo and behold! Free of lead!

And claim victory, in safeguarding our health.

And we will happily go back to eating Maggi,

Or whatever other noodles we switch to instead;

 

For someone is benefiting from this controversy,

It is a plot to undermine Maggi.

The whole world chases after a false scent,

And we too, get carried away, part of the herd.

 

Why only Maggi, why only noodles?

And why only lead, or any one isolated chemical?

These things in packets don't come from kitchens,

They come from labs, and are then advertised,

To convince us that they are good for us.

 

There is only one answer,

But the world won't see it.

You and I know it, but refuse to acknowledge it.

We need to buy food fresh and cook it,

In our own kitchens,

And eat it before it spoils!