Waah Taj!!!

Last weekend one of my dreams came true when I visited Taj Mahal, crowned as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. We were excited at the idea of visiting Taj, a memoir of love, built by Shah Jahan.

As we entered the compound, I was spell bounded by the enormous white marble building, standing in front of my eyes. Instantly, “Waah Taj” came out from my mouth. It was as beautiful as I had seen in pictures or heard by other people, the architectural work is at its best. The picturesque lawns in front of Taj added to its beauty. There is a rumor, about the person who designed it, that his hands were chopped off by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan so that no one can create a replica of this monument.

But, is our Taj going to ruins? As I was about to enter the monument, I realized that my dream is shattering. It was so crowded and mismanaged. Right from managing shoe racks to cleanliness, everything was looking shabby. People visiting this historical monument didn’t bother to keep it clean. As I entered inside, once I was surprised whether its day or night, as it was so dark inside. To add to our woes, every one was pushing inside. I felt that it might lead to a stampede. Seeing some of the foreign tourists in that mess, I had a bad feeling about what they might be thinking about India and Indians? Outside the white marble verandah, lots and lots of people were sitting as if like it’s a garden and some of them even scratching the marble floor and walls. It’s really shameful to see Taj going on path of ruins.

What’s our Government/ASI doing in this regard? Most of the foreign tourists coming to India visit Taj Mahal. There is already a hefty entry fees changed by foreigners (around $10) and Rs 20 from Indians, going upto five times during the full moon night. Are these funds being utilized properly or not? Government should provide more advanced facilities like automatically managed shoe-keeping system, electronic ticketing, modern techniques for cleaning the white marble and much more. Also, special care should be taken care for controlling the enormous splurge of crowd on weekends and national holidays. Checks should be maintained on people who are damaging the monument in any way and hefty fines should be levied. Also, it should be closed for renovating/maintenance once in every 3-6 months.

It’s our national heritage and we all voted enormously to make it in top 7 wonders of world. So, it’s our duty to protect it and leave a good impact on the world.

Chak De

It was hardly 4 weeks back when the movie “Chak De India”, a morale boosting movie of Women Indian hockey team, was released. Since then we have witnessed a sudden turn around in Indian sports.

In last week of August, low profile Indian Soccer team created a sensation, when they won Nehru cup by beating Syria in final. There weren’t many expectations from them. After 2 weeks, Indian hockey team created another ripple in Indian sports by drubbing South Korea, one of the best Asian teams, 7-2 in final of Asia Cup. It was a dream final as Indian Hockey team looked in full control in the whole tournament.

Next turn was of Indian Cricket, the most popular game in India. On 24th Sept, Indian cricket team did the least expected by wining the nail biting final from Pakistan by 5 runs. An India – Pakistan World Cup final, a dream come true for every Indian and Pakistani fan, really set the pace for Indian sport. It looks like everyone stand still during that last over bowled. Indian team attained new heights by clinching nerve cracking victories from England, SA, Australia and Pakistan.

It seems that Indian sports has turned its table around in just one month. How can a team who was ousted in first round in WC 3 months back, go on to win the WC? It’s just a difference in attitude. It seems “Chak de India” has done its trick in real life too. It may have motivated real time players too. Cricket players too admitted having sang this song and using this slogan very often during the WC. Seeing this inspirational movie creating tantrums in Indian sports, Indian bollywood films first time look like doing a perfect job for the country. In such a short duration, “Chak De” has really become a big brand name.