The year that was - 2008

It definitely, was a roller-coaster ride. Personally, it was the longest that I have been away from my loved ones. All those experiences of growing up in a boarding school were called into play. But, I enjoyed it all to the fullest.

Back home in India, this was the year of mayhem, bedlam, bloodbath on many a Streets including the famed Dalal Street, the epitome of its economy's ascendancy. The perpetrators made a mockery of our lives and the way it is valued and guarded. It was hit where it hurt most, aimed to dismantle the well-knit secular fabric of India, and its grandiose efforts to be an economic super-power, which it is well on course. This proxy war has been on for decades and continues to dangle on us. No longer our cities are safe, with the clear and present danger lurking around us, waiting to strike us anytime it wishes to. This has even prompted the inclusion of new-age terrorist-attack insurance plans in the offers of Insurance Companies.
Diplomatic and global pressure must be put on Pakistan, the Jehadi epicenter of the world, a fertile breeding ground and a safe haven for cowards, which continues to harbour the terror infrastructure, Zero tolerance to any more such attacks should be the mandate and they must be compelled to shutdown the terror industry at once, lest we dirty our hands.

It's recession time, baby !! This year, bleeding bourses has lead to many a bleeding hearts and pockets. The meltdown in USA, courtesy Subprime-effect, realty sh(l)owdown has had ripple effects throughtout the globe, debunking the theory that emerging economies are decoupled from whatever happens in the west. To look at the brighter side of it and by value-based pickings, we do ourselves a world of good. As always, what goes down will eventually come up & vice-versa.

This year has also seen the last of two of my favourite cricketers on field. One who still doesn't know how to deliver a leg-break, the other still looks like a baby lost in the woods when facing a short ball. But, they made up for skills they didn't have with what they had. That's the greatest truth in sports, as in life.
Anil Kumble, the 100% cricketer, whose commitment was indefatigable, shouldered the burden of being the mainstay of bowling for more than a decade. Post-retirement, he could be a very good statesman, holding onto a post in foreign relations office, considering the way he handled the imbroglio at Sydney "Monkeygate". A great model to emulate.
Sourav Ganguly, a star of the fab four quartet, will be credited for the way under his captaincy, Indian Cricket leapfrogged from a Tigers at Home on dust-bowls, meek and troubled tourists tag to Winners abroad consistently. His aggression and in-the-face attitude gave belief to the team that we could win anywhere, which was so glaringly absent in those days. He backed youngsters then viz., Sehwag, Harbhajan, Yuvraj, Zaheer, Dhoni and many more to the hilt and those rewards are being reaped now. Many a times, he got under the skin of the opposition and rubbed them the wrong way effortlessly. Naturally, he became the favourite whipping-boy for wearing his heart on his sleeve, until he went out on his own terms.

Here's me, Wishing you all a resplendent HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009 !!