Kochi road rage disappears on Kozhikode roads
Published August 12, 2010 | I was in Kozhikode recently and couldn’t help compare traffic in Kochi and Calicut.
In Kochi the roads are bigger than the ones in Calicut, no doubts there, and people tend to know road etiquette more than in Calicut. I know this is strange for a Kochiite – who is already showing signs of road rage reading this. But this is true!
In Calicut you find that no one follows any rules except when a traffic cop is around. And the best part about Calicut is that there’s not much of road rage, so pedestrians cross the road as and when they please and the motorist lets them go by quite unaffected most of the time.
The same situation in Kochi would have led to a cacophony of protests with cars honking, bikes revving, swears and cussing, all coming from all directions.
But in Calicut, even in Palayam Junction you find the lungi-clad men crossing the road to Moideen Palli (mosque) with not a care in this world. The motorist seems to know there’s this guy running to the mosque before the ‘Baanguvili‘. He patiently lets the man cross, allows a few bikewallahs to go ahead like he has all the time in the world.
It was amazing to observe this and even at lunch time, no one was in a mad rush there. I took a cue from them and followed what they did and allowed all to pass and for a change it felt good!
But then Calicut takes life at a slower pace, go by Mananchira Square on any weekday during working hours and you find scores of people sitting and talking on the grass. It makes you wonder how they survive? They show no sign of worries of work and other tensions and are busy talking politics or making plans, (no idea really), but it is a sight to see!
So while it pays to be a bully on Kochi roads it’s a joy to be a docile driver in Calicut and experience a tolerance that is liberating and refreshing.
Kerala football fever and err… Communism
Published July 7, 2010 | Kerala and West Bengal, the football crazy states of India are having a great time with the FIFA world cup getting to its final stages. Even the hilarious ‘Laka Laka’ Mallu song on YouTube has caught the national spotlight! The state rooted for Brazil and Argentina with fan clubs watching it here like they are cheering for India. Somehow with football Kerala gets more affected than even cricket, the national religion.
Coming from Calicut, I remember watching Nehru Trophy matches at the Stadium Ground. The ruckus they created, the collective groans and cheers are to be seen to be believed. Malabar people come out with vigour when they watch football and everyone’s an expert, I have heard shouts like, ‘attack the goalie’, or ‘poke his eyes out’, ‘change that guy‘ – rants’ being made with murderous looks. Ha ha!
Sitting in Kochi now I miss the spectacle being played out at the numerous cafes, clubs, and reading rooms in Calicut. They know all the details of scores of yore, lost chances and tactics and argue at the drop of a hat and even place bets. Scuffles were also common among friends during matches of opposing teams. Such drama hardly happens for cricket matches in Kerala, though with IPL Kochi team in the fray now, there is scope for similar stuff.
However, taking up causes far, far away has not been new for Kerala; Communism has seen Keralites and Bengalis shouting slogans for Cuba, Korea, Russia and even China. Even President Bush had been a popular effigy being burnt on the Kerala coast. Strange are the dynamics of this connection but then like football, we also tend to obsess about certain ideologies even if they don’t seem feasible these days. Keralites with communist leanings will speak of the life and times of Che Guevera, Karl Marx, Lenin, Castro and the like with ease.
So, here I’m left wondering did the football craze come years ago through Communism to the state. Hmm! If you are living in Kerala, there comes a time when you think- ‘Am I communist?‘ Nowadays it’s a mere thought, though it probably was a phase in a person’s life decades ago and a way of life much earlier. Like the Latin American countries with their Communism and their football craze, did football come to us in Kerala the communist way? Whatever be the reason for the football craze, even if communism doesn’t stay football is too deep-rooted in Kerala to fizzle out.
This Sunday like most people, I too am ready for the match on the big screen with a lot of crazy football fans. Food and drinks to flow; along with agonies and ecstasies. Though Brazil and Argentina have been routed out, the state seems to be coming together for Spain and The Netherlands. There is a delightful polarizing happening, bets being placed and Twitter tweets all playing a part to build up the excitement. Did I mention the number of LCD TVs being bought? Sony had a unique free World Cup replica football offer on. Paul, the Oracle octopus, is being discussed at length as well!
Kerala is ready, and nothing beats the joy of a sport, it’s a pure joy that’s frankly like no other! So, who are you supporting? 
Election Speech Backfiring – Et Tu Mamukoya?
Published November 9, 2009 | The elections came a
nd went and as we wait for the results I recall an incident that happened in Calicut. The ruling UDF decided to call upon Mamukoya (a.k.a Gafoor ka dost – a famous role he played as a cheat! ), the famous comedian of Malayalam cinema to entertain the crowd and to coax them into voting for their candidate. Calling a local celebrity is a ruse the world over and in India, the religion or the community the celebrity represents, plays an important part in the decision-making. Mamukoya is a Muslim and Calicut has a large Muslim population.
Mamukoya has entertained people all over Kerala with his humour and the people of Calicut hold him in high regard. There are so many jokes made with him as the central character that he has attained quite a following. The man famous for his uneven protruding teeth was once asked by a film scribe, “Sir, your teeth defines you, can you say something about it?” Pat came the reply, “my teeth were like jasmine buds when I was a child”. The reporter was smirking when he asked, “but sir what happened to them?” Mamukoya famously said, “like all buds… they bloomed”
Coming back to Mamukoya and his election speech… The stage was set and the UDF guys in their famous ‘white and white’ khadi clothes shone brightly as white as Mamukoya’s teeth were all looking forward to the great man’s entertaining speech. Amidst all the false promises and taking credit for all the developments that happened they awaited for Mamukoya’s humour and for him to end with a note to vote for their candidate.
Mamukoya began by calling out to his townspeople in the local style in his thick Calicut slang. The crowd went into raptures, he told the crowd to calm down and unlike his usual self went on to give a ‘teepori prasangam‘- a fiery speech. He spoke about the UDF and their promises which were not kept, recalled each and everything about the previous election and even went on to tell the people to NOT VOTE for the present candidate or for the UDF!
The red-faced UDF guys did not know what hit them. The crowd was in tears laughing and the reporters had a field day. Needless to say that was Mamukoya’s last election speech. The UDF guys still shiver like leaves when they recall the incident. Gafoor ka dost was indeed a Brutus, a Judas!
Jet set in style with jet airways
Published January 7, 2008 | 
Kochi: Jet Airways (India) Ltd located in Mumbai currently operates around 355 daily flights to 14 foreign countries apart from 44 domestic destinations. It has a formidable presence in almost all the leading airports in India and abroad. According to the latest available figures, it boasts of an impressive 43% of the total customer pie, which puts it ahead of any other Indian domestic operator. It was voted as the best airline in South- Central Asia segment by Skytrax, an in-flight research consultancy serves based in UK.
The airline has a total fleet of eight Boeing 777 aircraft, with two more being added on shortly. It is also planning to induct more Airbus 330-200 aircraft to its existing fleet of seven. In addition, an impressive add-on of 20 Boeing 737 and 10 Boeing 787 aircraft would make it a star among the private airline companies.
Jet Airways is all set to conquer the vast blue skies when it will be connecting 19 international destinations by 2008 April. This was disclosed by Sudheer Raghavan, Executive Vice-President (Commercial) of Jet Airways at a press conference coinciding with the launch of the Gulf sector services. As a new year gift to Kerala, Jet has launched three daily direct flights — Kochi-Kuwait, Kochi-Baharain and Mumbai-Kuwait, which would ease the congestion in this busy sector. Two new flights to Mascut and Doha (Qatar) will be introduced from Calicut this month end.
He defined Jet airlines as the face of new India and hoped that the Indian aviation segment would have more private players in the near future, which would offer a greater choice for the jet setting public of today.
The airline is awaiting the approval for a Mumbai – Shanghai – San Francisco sector. In addition it has plans for operating various new services to destinations such as Hong Kong, Chicago, Houston and African destinations like Johannesburg and Nairobi.
The merger of Jet Airways and Air Sahara has added an impetus in completing the integration of schedules and marketing plans, Mr. Raghavan said. According to him Indian passengers were often forced to make compromise on the quality of flight services and Jet is committed to make a sea change in this scenario by ensuring international quality aboard the flight and on the ground. That should be a cheering note for all jet setters.