RTI - The 'Right' weapon!!

Pragati, the Social Initiatives wing of IIM Indore is organizing RTI Week in Indore. So far my only association with the event had been as a designer having designed its posters and pamphlets. However, today I got an opportunity to attend a session on RTI where Mr. Saurabh Sharma of JOSH and Mr. Santosh Jha of Parivartan enlightened the participants on the power and use of RTI.
And since then I feel inspired to say the least.
Having realised how compelling a force RTI can be against the callousness of government offices, I see it as one of the greatest 'gifts' from our hexagenarian democracy. Finally the common man of India has been able to secure the ammunition that can penetrate even the thick-skinned government officers. Now, considering that Indian politics has left no stone unturned in order to restrict the act to another decayed column in the Law books it's left to us, the citizen of this country to decide its true future. An extensive and rightful use of the act can do wonders and bring about unprecedented changes in the rotting system.
Today this country stands at a juncture where such an opportunity should be seen as a means of bringing about a revolution. We should practise it as a duty rather than just a right. This chance of scoring over the parasytic politics and bureaucracy must not go waste! The best part is that practising RTI is amazingly easy and cheap. All one needs is a little grit and determination to lead the petition to its destination.
www.indorertiweek.com gives one all the necessary information regarding filing of RTI form and the nuances of the act. Its a humble request from my side to anyine who comes across this post to kindly familiarize yourself with RTI and use it in order to empower the common man.
It may not change things overnight but even it leads to a single brick added to the wall of integrity in our government offices, I would call it success!
Some aware people have already used it to get ration problems solved for a whole community, get streets of a whole area illuminated, bring water to hundreds and most important of all, to make a statement that this country is still OF THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE and FOR THE PEOPLE. Log on to www.cic.gov.in or www.rti.gov.in for more details and make sure you aren't made to run after tha babus anymore!!

Oye Lucky Lucky Oye - Review

Director - Dibakar Bannerjee
Rating - 2.5/5

Success in your very first venture can sometimes prove to be a pain in the a**. It not only leads to increased expectations from others but also to some amount of overconfidence in yourself.
Have a look at one of the posters of OLLO and the words - 'from the makers of Khosla Ka Ghosla' make it clear that it tried to capitalize on KKG's success right from the word 'go'. However for Dibakar Banerjee this might just backfire!
For me, although a decent watch, OLLO was no way near KKG. Not only 'cause it lacked an entertaining and gripping plot like KKG but also 'cause a sense of humour that was too subtle and too embedded in dialogues to catch attention. Also the perfect timing displayed by Anupam Kher and Ranbir Shourie in KKG was missed badly in this one. However the main drawback is that 90% of the audience comes out with an expression on their face as if they were shown a Korean movie with Greek subtitles. In short 'ye movie na, kuchh samajh nahi aayee' is what u get to hear all the way through the exit corridoor of the hall. The movie ocsillates between simplicity and complexity and perhaps the screenwriter was paid less.
As far as the actors go, Abhay Deol tries his best to look the Lucky he was supposed to be only to be beaten to it by a teenaged surd called Manjot Singh. Scenes showing the teen days of Lucky are actually the best part. Actress Neetu Chandra however looks simple and beautiful while portraying her small yet effective role with utmost ease. Paresh Rawal could have done better by sharing a character or two with some other actor as him playing 3 different roles really did not make much sense except showing signs of 'cost cutting due to recession'.
However, having said all that, I would still go on to say that I consider the movie worth watching once at least. The impeccable portarayal of the 'gullys of dilli', the teenage Lucky and his kaarnaame, the dedication with which Lucky steals, the well timed retro background score, the subtle but rib tickling humour here and there, the no moral baggaged characters and a few hidden satires on the society together make sure that you get the worth of your money. Some good work by the Art Director and the cameraperson make it all the more likable for Dilliwallas.