Eashwer Dass

An acquired taste that can prick your wallet If you are a durian lover, then you are so doomed! We now live in a time that the price that you pay for your acquired taste is as bizarre and freaky as the robust smelling delicacy itself. It’s become quite unthinkable to stop along roadside stalls breaking long journeys across the countryside to indulge in one of our many National die hard habits, which is to savour on fresh durians as well as other local fruits and produce. Enter the new business concept of cafes just serving durians and curtains down to the days when Malaysians just enjoyed squatting on roadsides to gobble up the fruit sold at throw away prices. The top of the range of the fruit is known as the Musang King and has an asking price of RM 70 to RM 100 per kilogram, whereas, in China, people actually pay a King’s ransom to sink their teeth into its sweet yellow flesh. A durian contains 5 or 6 pieces or fleshy seeds inside its compartmentalised...

The Proverbial Pirate in Private The Malaysian Film Censorship Board’s Proverbial Axe found its latest target, the Hindi movie titled Padmaavat. The movie is about a love affair between Alauddin Khilji, a Muslim ruler and Padmavati, a Hindu Queen that sparked controversies and criticisms in India. The Proverbial Reason not to give an immature Nation an Axe to Grind, after being fuelled by deep hatred and unrest watching its explosive content was the usual reason for the chop. The Indian Censor board, un-flinched by threats of a huge bounty offered to behead the actress along with its director also gallantly played down criticisms by Hindu groups about its Historic authenticity, which only displayed tremendous trust on its citizens. The Movie collected approximately 12,000,000 Ringgit on the first day but no real red blood was drawn or split apart from the prop in its sets. So, let’s watch a Pirate in Private within the confines of our own home box office theatre instead. EDit...

NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH The lads were trapped and they knew only too well that the old man would not give up easily. Highly intoxicated, they were not in any mood to compromise their freedom which meant finding a way out of the tight situation they were in. The only way out of the neighbourhood was blocked by a gutsy old man, and that man was Steven Ng Teen Cheong. It was a classic OK Corral showdown once again, but instead of Marshal Wyatt Earp of Tombstone, Arizona, packing a six-shooter firearm, it was Steven Ng, the Sheriff of the Rukun Tetangga or citizens beat base of SS 25, PJ, armed with only a broken tree branch and packing raw guts. The motorbike engine revved furiously like it was getting ready for a flag off in a motorcycle drag race, but instead, it was only to warn Steven Ng, that he was standing in harm’s way if he did not pack it in, make like a tree and leaf. The boys on the bike were notoriously familiar in Steven’s neighbourhood; they have been snatc...

Real Wealth The wealth of a person is usually measured by a price tag on the material and external features valued by society. The real unit of measure is to compare our lives with the people twho have lost everything through unfortunate circumstances and which accounts for a substantial portion of the world's population. The immeasurable bits and pieces that make life worth living are things like a burst of laughter at the dining table with the family over trivialities that were not even hilarious or having come out a terrible ordeal together unscathed, by the Lord’s grace. Now that’s the measure of real wealth. EDit . Who will cry for them? Its winter now in Greece and not everybody will be fortunate enough to enjoy the warmth and cheer of the Christmas season. This is especially true for the children of war who have fled from their burning homes in Syria and currently seeking temporary refuge in Greece.  Greece is host to 50,000 homeless Syrians, ...

Birthday Party Today, I attended the birthday party of Methu Shan, my four year old friend who celebrated his it at his Play School. It was a rich and rewarding experience to watch kids do their thing in a classroom, apart from their size they behave just like adults. My eyes became the lens of a camcorder recording every moment of the gracious celebration, which in my thoughts should be made mandatory by every Government in every country, for every kid to celebrate their birthdays at least up to a certain age. From my arrival to the premises till the end of the event, the camera was rolling, recording it to mind which translated the entire event as something more than just a birthday party. It was a simultaneous recall of my own life at that age in comparison to his, running on two separate screens, fortunately both were in colour even though the our age gapped  a good fifty years but colour was already in by then. My friend had a twinkle in his eyes...

Dairy Farming Eyeballing the local dairy industry to sufficiently produce milk for consumption, while trying to reverse the high dependency on its importation is like taking the bull by its horns. The dairy industry in this country has been in failure mode for almost forever and as the consequence, it has made dairy produce an expensive delicacy rather than that of necessity. It has totally endorsed a new definition to the expression Milk Money, making it ever so contrary to what it really means.  Milk is a natural fuel for the human body and the goodness that is associated with consuming it is universal. It would be sacrilege to prevent it from being available in abundance and reasonably priced. Milk along with its derived products are only accessible to the rich in this country and therefore the lower income groups have been deprived of it due to the many and repeated blunders of the irresponsibility shown by the administration of this country.   What is...

Kalamisation 15th Oct 1931 to 27th July 2015 India has been prosperous in producing a wealth of sons, daughters, saints and even Gods, as great legends etched in the annals of history, but today she weeps bitterly in bereavement for the loss of one more of her jewels from her treasures.  A.P.J. Abdul Kalam from Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu was one of her most versatile and precious. To best sum up Abdul Kalam in one sentence is, to say that he could simply place his hand in murky water and turn it, into pure crystal clear, thirst quenching water to drink. This man was no GOD but, he moved the hearts and souls of people who sealed his messages with their tears of joy everywhere in India, and the world. Like Arjuna in the Baghavad Geetha who was both warrior and righteous, Abdul Kalam too was not only a humanitarian, but he was once the President of a powerful nation and also the architect of its modern nuclear and rocket technology whic...

HAIKU God’s most adored Flower Shred to a river of blood; Vegas drown in tears.

In between the morning before the QUIET And the night of the deafening sounds of DEATH The sweet happiness of A CONCERT remains in memory and BOOM!!! Songs they heard before their death will be remembered by you REMEMBER those who perished by listening to those happy songs Think of them, when you hear THOSE SONGS again Never forget the pain they felt until your breath leaves you NEVER FORGET THOSE SONGS they heard NEVER FORGET THE DAY THEY HURT MANCHESTER.

Mohamad Thaqif Amin Mohd Gaddafi Whispering, God asked him. Are you Thaqif ? The One  who is intelligent? The One who is proficient? The One who is Skilled? Thaqif : Yes my Lord, I am named so. God: Why have you come home so soon my son . Voice raised a little, God asked him. What did the other children know that you do not? And What did you do that the other children didn't? Thaqif : I made a few mistakes my Lord. I was naughty. God: Punished till limbs mutilated black, torn off and life snuffed out of your fragile body. What could you have done to earn such wrath my child? Did they not, your family, your teachers, your school, your fellow citizens protect you from this terrible, horrible and unmerciful act my child? Thaqif : For my little misdemeanors I broke canes, the canes broken on me has broken the heart of a nation and so I have taken a beating for every child who is left to the mercy of his caretaker. A caretaker who canno...

Child lock is a prayer to keep children protected from everything harmful, to be blessed with Prosperity, Health, a long life and bask in an Abundance of Happiness. Remember Always! In catastrophes the biggest losers are they who are reduced to a ‘lesser children’ when they ought not to be. They are made to suffer for the vicious games adults play and not even spared by God’s own devices. Pray that every child has a child lock. Begin with yours, NOW! EDit. APRIL 28, 2016

Once every year a certain day will appear on the calendar and will change your age forever. A one day pass is handed to you with an exciting beginning but like everything else, it also has an ending. A grim reminder that this day takes us a little further away from the day of our true beginnings and that is moving away towards an uncertain ending. On this day we find joy in letting people spoil us with presents, cakes, and other niceties. You will be the person of everybody’s attention. No matter how hard you try and prepare for your next birthday you can only do better if you realise that your birthday is not just one day on the calendar but instead it is the summary of the whole year celebrated on this special day. On this day we should reassess the past to see what we have done, then examine the present in what we are doing and look into the future to see how better we can do. So your birthday is that day to reflect your life exactly the one calendar...

African  This is a picture of an African man meditating in his humble dwelling, who allowed our photographer to shoot him but not before giving her something cool to drink and plenty to think. He portrays the mysticism of the black, brown and ebony children of Africa living in the 54 states that make her their home. With the sound of a DSLR, Canon’s triggering mechanism, as the background beat. I put this little rhyme together, calling it an African anthem of gratitude for a treat. Think of the shutter sound while reciting this praise. A mellowed look, he wore a forlorn face. On this hot day, I gladly gulped it down with not a drop to trace. This ole man offered me, what I thought was lemonade. He offered me another one with his shiny eyes like Jade. His eyes showed kindness, saying plenty about the African race. amesege’nallo, Zikomo Kwambiri, may-dah-say, i-ni-cheh, bah-si-...

Dream Team In a dream one night, there was a blurred vision of a swarm of butterflies zooming in from a distance, which then gradually transformed into hundreds of agitated moths approaching rapidly towards my face. Up close, these deadly looking moths turned out to be miniature airborne stainless steel razor sharp surgical scalpels with minute wings rapidly flapping, propelling them forward. Just like miniature attack helicopters, they were mounted on and operated by tiny animated angioplasty, stents, which were the pilots flying these scalpels. These pilots were strapped with little backpacks which had unreadable labels sewed onto them. The entire event seemed as if it was a scene from a digitally animated cartoon . Meanwhile, my mouth was frothing from being forcibly kept open by a nickel plated dental contraption making my oral cavity the passage   for these little mounted metallic winged vermins to fly in. Thes...