Why do we need film songs in school events?
The time when one goes though primary and High school students is a very impressionable one. Any seed that is sown, sprouts immediately. That soft ground does not know whether the seed would grow to yield good fruit or a bad one. Their minds are like soft surfaces that hold the impression of whatever is thrown at them, without any discrimination. It is impossible to undo their memories formed during this time.
Hence the atmosphere at home and school have to be really conducive for children to grow up. They develop taste, aptitude and inclination towards good things at this age. More than annual exams shaping their personality and future, annual day organized by the school shapes their senses even better. Annual events showcase the talent of students, thus making the day extremely special for them. Their joy and happiness knows no bounds on those days. Their true interests are on display on that very special day.
Sports and extracurricular activities are also held on the day. Those who are good at scoring, need not be great sportspersons too. Someone who does not score well, may be a good player who can earn everyone’s respect and admiration on that day by winning prizes! This annual school day often showcases many talents of students such as music, singing, art etc. But a few schools conduct annual days for name sake, creating only scoring students and leaving behind the creative side of students in total darkness. Students in such schools live a creatively dead life almost.
The cultural event in the annual day gets most prominent space. Children’s talent of singing, dancing and other forms of creativity is expressed on this day. But in many schools, the dance and song routine is failing to fulfil its very objective. Teachers believe dance is about tapping foot to recorded film songs. Hence in most schools film songs make for most of the entertainment programme on the annual day.
This does not mean film songs should be dismissed completely. There are many ways in which film songs can reach students today. Children watch them on social media, on television and on phones too. They try to imitate them. But the film songs hardly have any literary significance. Film songs may have counter effect on children since most of them are written with adults in mind. Imitating this would mean children are losing their innocence at very early age.
In the past, school events would have poems and folk songs to which the students either sang together or danced. These songs that could be seen only in text books, used to be children’s favourite after they sing and dance to them at school events. Since they used to listen to them for more than two weeks in order to prepare for the school event, they would be happy listening to them without any pressure of scoring marks at the end of this. Other would join them while they learnt the dance and every one would enjoy humming along.
They would then know about the poets who wrote these songs or the meaning of the folk song. They could imagine a village when they listened to a folk song. They would become familiar with hunting songs, kolata songs, varieties of folk literature etc thus understanding the social context described by the song. Their perception of the society would be shaped through these. Even dramas should be employed to introduce history and folk literature to children. This would lead to their personality development.
Unfortunately, in the recent times school events are reduced to just shaking a leg to cinema songs and enacting scenes from films. Looks like even teachers find it easy to make children imitate cinema since they can follow without any hassles. More than this, the new generation of teachers have no clue about poems and folk songs. Most convents and English schools have this issue since remain distant from the culture of the land. Which is why they make children dance to ready cinema songs. Even parents don’t bother much about this and in fact feel proud about their children perfectly imitating the actors. How does one create a sense of pride about culture in children when this is the fact? If children appreciate double entendre at an age when they can barely understand it, how do they grow as adults?
Media reports suggest the education department has sent a circular stating no film songs should be used in school events, and this is a highly appreciable move. Let the students choose what they want to do in college events. But at a time when they are still innocent, they should not develop a taste for crass. Parents have to stand by the institutes and government in this case, for the sake of their children. They need to understand that our culture has to be safeguarded through our songs that reflect the soil. We also need to protect folk songs and poems from being lost. Else, a day may not be very far when film songs may gain an entry into Kannada text books.
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Iran Shocks World, Hits F-35
America's most advanced fighter jet, the F-35, was never hit in combat — not once, in its entire history. Countries spend over ₹900 crore to buy just one of these aircraft. The whole world believed this plane was untouchable. Then, on March 19, something happened over Iranian skies that shocked military experts across the globe.
Iran hit it. And nobody saw it coming.
America Was Too Confident — That Was the Problem
Before understanding how this happened, you need to understand what America believed going into this. The US had been bombing Iran since February 28. After roughly 20 days of heavy strikes, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that Iran's air defences were completely destroyed — finished, flattened, gone.
US President Donald Trump even said proudly, "We can fly wherever we want, and no one is even firing at us."
Based on this confidence, America flew its prized F-35 deep into the heart of central Iran. That alone tells you how sure they were. You don't send your most expensive jet into enemy territory unless you believe there is zero danger.
But Iran, a country under heavy international sanctions, still had something left. And it used that something extremely well.
So How Did Iran Actually Hit a Stealth Jet?
Here is where it gets interesting for regular people to understand.
We have all heard the word "stealth" — it sounds like the plane is completely invisible. But India Today explained that stealth only means it is hard to detect by radar. Hard — not impossible. It does not mean the aircraft is totally invisible.
Think of it this way. Even if you cannot see someone in a dark room, you can still feel their body heat if they stand close enough. That is almost exactly what happened here.
The F-35's engines produce enormous heat. Iran's weapon likely used an infrared sensor — basically a heat-seeking system — to detect that heat, lock onto it, and follow the jet. No radar needed. The F-35's biggest advantage, its radar-invisibility, simply did not matter.
The weapon Iran likely used was the 358 missile — also called SA-67 — which is a loitering munition. Think of it as a slow, intelligent drone that flies around patiently waiting, scanning the sky for heat signals from aircraft engines. Once it finds one, it chases it down. Iran has used this exact weapon before against American MQ-9 Reaper drones — and since this war started, America has already lost more than 12 of those drones.
This Has Happened Before — In 1999
This is not the first time America's "invisible" aircraft was brought down by a smarter enemy.
In 1999, during NATO's bombing campaign over Serbia, the US flew its F-117 Nighthawk — which was then considered the world's most advanced stealth aircraft. Serbian forces shot it down using an old Soviet missile system from the 1960s. Not with new technology — with clever thinking. They briefly switched on their radar, caught the jet at the right moment when its stealth was less effective, and fired.
The lesson both then and now is the same — no aircraft is completely invincible. Smart tactics can beat expensive technology.
Why This Changes Everything in the Iran War
Here is the bigger picture that really matters.
America and Israel had told the world that Iran's air defences were basically dead. Based on that, they sent massive B-1 and B-2 bombers — aircraft that are normally used only when a country is 100% sure it controls the enemy's sky. That is a huge military risk to take.
But if an F-35 — the most advanced aircraft in the sky — can still be hit, then Iran's defences are clearly not dead. Some pieces are still very much alive and working.
This means the US and Israel may now be forced to completely rethink their war plan. Their jets may need to fly higher, use longer-range weapons, and spend far more time and money finding where Iran's remaining defence systems are hiding underground.
Around 15 countries use the F-35 today. Even India was offered this jet by Trump during PM Modi's White House visit — though India has not shown interest so far.
Geopolitical expert Adam summed it up simply — a heavily sanctioned country just tracked, chased, and hit the world's most expensive stealth jet. That is not a small thing.
Sometimes, one moment changes everything.
(Girish Linganna is an award-winning science communicator and a Defence, Aerospace & Geopolitical Analyst. He is the Managing Director of ADD Engineering Components India Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany.)
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views, policies, or position of the publication, its editors, or its management. The publication is not responsible for the accuracy of any information, statements, or opinions presented in this piece.
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