PODCAST LINK - Nov 19, 2008 - giving thanks.. and other sentiments

giving thanks.. and other sentiments..

This past "holiday" week was a bit of a rollercoaster... i spent most of the week in the mountains.. but the usual myrth and merriment of this holiday (turkey day - thanksgiving..) was overshadowed by the attacks on the city of Mumbai and i was glued to the television in our cabin every evening to see what would happen next and when the killing would stop... a really horrifying thing to see.. and i was filled with sadness seeing the faces of people in the streets looking on as the Taj hotel burned.. it made me angry, it made me sad.. it made me remember what 911 felt like..i considered cancelling my upcoming bollywood night but thought again that it might give people a chance to let off some of the frustration from this past few weeks.. basically, events like this leave us feeling paralyzed and confused.. i dont see any clear message from this action.. its just another shock attack from some gang of psychotic motherless wannabe-revolutionaries..

anyway, i was feeling bummed and a bit numb from this horrible tragedy... so i thought id play some indian classics - and one track by ustad nusrat fateh ali khan - the late legendary pakistani qawaali singer - a really beautiful remix that transcends all this stupidity - people will be quick to judge pakistan.. but pakistani people are not behind this.. "it's a political thing" according to one of my friends from nearby in mumbai... most of this crap goes back to the violent clashes just after independence - britain cut india and pakistan into slices (On 3 June 1947, Viscount Louis Mountbatten, the last British Governor-General of India, announced the partitioning of the British Indian Empire into a secular India and a Muslim Pakistan) and people were forced to leave their homes and their land - lots of bloodshed and many unforgotten wounds from those days... now it's remained a political fued... the people dont all hate each other... according to an anecdote from another friend from india, the cricket team from India went to Pakistan recently for the first time in many many years and they stayed in the Pakistani people's homes... the politicians still hold the grudges though.. and according to some sources, the pakistani government has aided radical groups in the past ... i guess this time their thug buddies went too far because they're not too quick to take credit for it..

anyway... history has all the clues to the violence going on the world today-- the seeds were planted years ago.. mainly by the colonial "empires" that are now finding their economies collapsing -- is it karma maybe?

here are the translated lyrics to the song "Zindegi Ek Safar" from Andaz which I played during this show :
'Zindagi Ek Safar' from movie 'Andaz (1971)'

zindagi ek safar hai suhana
life is a wonderful journey
yahan kal kya ho kisne jaana
no one knows what will happen in the future
(yodeling)
arey o leiyo leiyo, oleiyo leiyo
oleiyo leiyo, oleiyo leiyo
oleiyo leiyo, oleiyo leiyo
chaand taaron se chalna hai aage
we have to go ahead of the moon and the stars
asmaanon se badna hai aage
we have to reach beyond the skies
pichhe reh jayega yeh zamana
this world will be left behind
yahan kal kya ho kisne jaana
who knows what the future is
zindagi ek safar hai suhana
life is a wonderful journey
yahan kal kya ho kisne jaana
no one knows what the future is
haste gate jahan se guzar
tread life joyfully
duniya ki tu parvah na kar
don't wory about the rest of the world
muskuraate hue din bitana
pass the day smilingly
yahan kal kya ho kisne jaana
no one knows what the future will be
haan zindagi ek safar hai suhana
yes, life is a beauful journey
yahan kal kya ho kisne jaana
no one knows what the future will be
maut aani hai ayegi ik din
death will befall us one day
jaan jaani hai jayegi ik din
the soul will depart one day
aisi baaton se kya ghabrana
why worry about such things
yahan kal kya ho kisne jaana
who knows what the future will be
zindagi ek safar hai suhana
life is a wonderful journey
yahan kal kya ho kisne jaana
no one knows what the future will be
(yodeling)
di di di, du du du
oleyo leyo ha haa haa


PODCAST LINK - If music Could Talk - Nov 19, 2008

enjoy the podcast - shamshad begum, asha, lata, mukesh, dj hyacinth d'souza, ustad nusrat fateh ali khan, sun ra, john zorn, husker du, the clash, peter murphy, etc