From Modi magic to urn politics
There is no second thought on the fact that Atal Bihari Vajpayee is single handedly responsible for the respectable position the otherwise ‘untouchable’ BJP acquired in the past to form NDA. We don’t know yet of how long Modi’s fallacy and loud politics would continue. But Vajpayee provided a solid foundation for BJP is a reality beyond any doubt. Vajpayee has a long standing political journey that begins from pre-independence days. He built BJP based on liberal values of Hindutva.
Hence, his statesmanship should mean much more to BJP over the politics of Adityanath, Amit Shah or Modi and the likes who have no value-based approach to their politics. After his death, Vajapayee’s persona is being misused. Of course, the members of BJP have all the rights to invoke the name of their leader who built the party. And if the opposition says a party should not use the name of its most significant person, it would be ridiculous.
Congress still uses the name of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv at every election it fights. Reforms such as land tenancy act, or nationalization of banks brought in by Indira Gandhi; and the computer revolution set in by Rajiv are still good calling cards of Congress around every election. So then why should the BJP not use the name of Vajpayee who just died a few days ago? In a way, BJP has a better standing when they take Vajpayee's name for the sake of their party. But then today’s BJP that is led by Modi does not want to identify itself around the statesmanship, liberal values and accomplishments of Vajpayee. They do not want to follow the values set their most revered leader either.
Everybody remembers their favourite leaders through their achievements. For instance, the country knows the contribution of Nehru, Indira Gandhi or Rajiv through the progress of the country. Similarly, Vajpayee has contributed very significantly to the country’s bilateral relations with other nations. He never assumed his ideology was bigger than the nation itself. He tried hard to control the extremist powers that had set out to destroy the interest of the country against the Hindutva they wanted to spread across the nation.
He was helpless amidst the extremist forces that had surrounded him. His efforts to improve Indo-Pak relations are highly commendable and honest to the core. To remember him, is to live the ideals he strived to introduce into the society. But when he slipped into coma, his ideals also slipped into dark alleys of this nation. Today, nobody needs the path he followed.
BJP leaders only need the ashes from his final rites. They have now filled the urns in his name and have set out to all corners of the country to achieve their goal. If there is a way he’d know about this, it would hurt Vajpayee more than anyone else.
One of the first persons who took objection to this is Vajpayee's sister Karuna Shukla. “We have completed the final rites of Vajpayeeji according to our family customs and scattered his ashes in Ganga and Yamuna as per the tradition,” she told the media. But then BJP has been filling numerous metal pots with ashes claimed to be that of Vajpayee's and distributing them to states across the nation. Their intention is to scatter the ashes in main rivers in every state. While the family members already said they didn’t hand over the ashes to anyone else, what ash is being distributed in the name of Vajpayee then? Who gave them that amount of ash? Putting aside his ideals and values, why is BJP hell bent upon only disseminating his ashes? Why has the party come down to this? BJP as it stands now, has completely ignored the ideals and values that Vajpayee stood for. They are now out to emotionally manipulate people just the way as they did with Ram Janma Bhoomi issue collecting bricks in the name of god. They are trying to cover up their misdemeanors under the guise of ashes.
In the recent times, government and Pollution control boards have been laying down strict rules against discarding remnants of corpses in rivers. Now the government itself is spearheading this scattering of ashes in rivers. How would the government then advise common people not to engage in such rituals? Now the ashes that are entering the river stream are not from Vajpayee's final rites. They are the result of reducing his thoughts to cinders. This ash is that of the person who advised his men to follow ‘Raj dharma’ after the Gujarat genocide. They are the ashes of those people who died standing in queues during demonetization. And those of the people who were killed at the hands of mobs for transporting cattle. Those who were lynched in connivance with the government have become ashes. It is also that of those babies who died under the government’s watch for lack of oxygen.
BJP leaders are scattering them in rivers. Thus insulting their own Namami Gange, in glaring day light.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
South zone finalists announced at WAVES VFX challenge in Bengaluru
Bengaluru: The South Zone round of the WAVES VFX Challenge took place today in Bengaluru, organized by the Association of Bangalore Animation Industry (ABAI).
The day-long competition brought together talented participants from across southern India, with the goal of selecting top finalists who will go on to represent the region at the national finals next month during the WAVES Summit in Mumbai.
Finalists were selected in three categories:
Student Category
Winner: Soumya Das
Runner-up: Gagan HP
Professional Category
Winner: Mohamad Javeed
Runner-up: S Sai Chandan
Enthusiasts Category
Winner: Gagan Ajai
Over 1,500 entries were received from students, working professionals, and VFX enthusiasts, all centered around the theme “Super Hero Power.” Out of these, 14 entries were shortlisted to compete in today’s final round. One winner and one runner-up from each category were chosen to represent the South Zone in Mumbai.
ABAI Secretary R.K. Chand appreciated the strong participation and encouraged industry professionals to attend the Mumbai summit, which will host well-known personalities from films, advertising, and creative sectors. He also mentioned that the WAVES Challenge was recently launched in Bengaluru by Sanjay Jaju, Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
The event was inaugurated by Dr. Sagar Gulati, Director of the School of Creative Design and Information Technology at Jain (Deemed-to-be University), the zonal partner for the competition.
The day also featured two special sessions led by industry experts. Vijay Selvam from the global VFX studio MPC held a masterclass titled “Concept Reality,” where he discussed lighting, animation, compositing, and photorealistic effects. Students got the chance to interact with him during a Q&A session.
Another session was conducted by Rakesh H, Lead Head at The Mill, who spoke about how visual effects are used in advertising. Nearly 100 students attended these sessions, gaining valuable industry insights and learning opportunities.
