Destination Infinity's Blog, page 7

Why did the British ACTUALLY leave India?

# Gandhi’s Non-Violent movement/struggle is considered to be the main reason why the British left India, at least in textbooks. While this non-violent people’s revolution was a major factor in getting Independence, it was far from being the only reason. Let’s remember that the British had been handling the challenges that Gandhi and INC posed, for over two-and-a-half decades – in 1947.

# Was Subhas Chandra Bose the reason? Subhas Chandra Bose managed to build an army from outside India, and even threatened the British in Myanmar and North-East India. But once the Japanese troops (who were helping him alongside) left, his army couldn’t do much against the superior British forces.

People consider Subhas’s Indian forces fighting against our own British Indian forces as one of the lowest points in colonial India. Because, technically, Indians were fighting Indians! But when you read the ‘Sepoy Mutiny’ point in this article, you’ll change your mind.

# Was Hitler and his Second World War the reason? The WWII was a major factor. World War II created conditions that eventually aided Indian Independence. But if the world war was the main factor, India would have won Independence in 1918, after the first world war when similar conditions prevailed. Or, India would have gotten freedom in 1945 when the war ended and the British were at their weakest. That too didn’t happen.

What happened from 1945 to 1947?

Immediately after World War II, the British, like any good colonialist, attempted to consolidate and strengthen their hold on India. But the following three factors, along with the above-mentioned ones, finally ensured the British left India.

# Economic Losses

Due to the second world war, the British needed lot of ammunition, soldiers, and other wartime materials. India provided them. But that did not come for free – the British had to pay for them. Although they used the taxes collected in India to pay, it was insufficient. So they had to pay from their own pockets.

The British thought they could resume making profits out of India after the war ended. But they couldn’t.

# Religious Conflicts

The Hindu-Muslim violence did not start after the partition was announced. It started right after the World War II because Indians knew the British were leaving, and were concerned about the power structures in the Independent nation.

Although both agreed to it later, initially, Gandhi did not want partition. Neither did Jinnah. But the idea was pushed by the last British Governor General Mountbatten who saw it as the only feasible solution to the religious unrest.

Unless the British had seen the Religious conflicts as an administrative nightmare, they wouldn’t have come to this conclusion.

One rare occasion when internal/religious conflict actually helped us!

# Sepoy Mutiny

No, this is not the Sepoy Mutiny that happened in 1857. This was the upcoming Sepoy Mutiny that would have happened in 1947-48 had the British not left India.

When the British left India, just over 0.1 million British administrators were ruling 300 million Indians. Guess what was their trump card? Yes, the British Indian soldiers (sepoys).

In 1857, when the British Indian Sepoys mutinied, Britain quickly dispatched soldiers from home. But in 1945, because of Hitler’s world war, the British forces in Europe were hugely depleted.

Emboldened by the Japanese & Bose’s victories against the British in Asia, the British Indian soldiers saw the European supremacy theory folding to dust.

The British Indian soldiers helped the British in their world war but got nothing in return.

The British-trained Indian soldiers captured from Nethaji’s force were being jailed and unfairly tried for treason.

All this infuriated the British Indian soldiers and mutities had already began in the British Indian army and the navy during 1945-47.

How could the British administrators be secure if they couldn’t depend on their own force? In the end, when it mattered, the British Indian sepoys demonstrated their disloyalty to the British.

Whatever the Indian sepoys might have done to fellow Indians in the past, what they did in 1945-47 was crucial in the British deciding to leave India.

Did Gandhi & INC not play a major role in helping us gain Freedom?

They did.

In 1942, when Churchill diverted Indian foodgrains to aid Britain’s war efforts in Europe and created the Britian-made famine in Bengal, Gandhi and the members of INC were furious.

Gandhi started the Quit India movement, but he realized that the entire INC top command was going to be jailed – as usual.

So this time Gandhi did something different.

Instead of directing the protest from top-down, he let the masses take charge of the revolution and keep the flame going even in the absence of the leaders. Even if that meant using some violence. This bit he didn’t say, but it was implied.

People took the cue and gave hell to the British administrators and merchants across the Indian subcontinent.

No wonder the British wanted to leave India in 1947, instead of 1948 as they had planned earlier.

My Travel Book to India [Promo Video – Explainer Video style]

I made this new promo video for my travel book to India that I wrote and published eight years ago. I’ve made this book trailer video in the explainer video style that uses 2D animation extensively. Each scene has visuals that match the narration, to reinforce the message being conveyed.

Hope you like this video

Destination Infinity

If you are curious about the book, here is the Amazon Kindle product page.

Chennai Flower Show

The first edition of the Chennai Flower Show just concluded on June 6, 2022. Above-embedded is the photo slideshow video with photos taken during the Chennai Flower Show.

Since I was not able to go, Ramya clicked all the pics. Looks like she is becoming the photojournalist for Destination Infinity, and I, the editor!

Destination Infinity

Photos courtesy: RR Fashion Jewellery

Island Grounds Exhibition, Chennai (Jun. 2, 2022 Onwards) [Kodai Kondattam]

The Island Grounds Exhibition, Chennai, [Kodai Kondattam] is happening from June 2 (2022) Onwards at Island Grounds, Chennai. The nearest bus stand/metro station is Chennai Central. (Google Maps link for location.)

Timings: Weekdays – 3 P.M. to 10 P.M., Sunday: 12 P.M. to 10 P.M.

Attractions: Stalls, Games, Food Court, Waterfalls, Snow Show, Bird Show, etc.

All this info is based on the below poster we found nearby Wallajah Road.

Coffee = Rs. 350, Veg Puffs = Rs. 250?!

We were expecting the coffee to cost 350 rupees+ because we searched for the prices before going. But Rs. 250 for veg puffs is something we didn’t expect!

We had White Chocolate Mocha (Iced). It was sweet & good. But the other one we bought, Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino, was not that good. Despite that alluring name, it was bitter. Since we went there for the first time, we had no clue what to order, so we ordered randomly from the menu

After Starbucks, we went to our local Primas bakery and bought veg puffs for Rs. 25 each. What a satisfaction!

Destination Infinity

Perils of Athletic Training & Sports Achievement at a Young Age

In, “The Pain Relief Secrets: How to Retrain Your Nervous System, Heal Your Body, and Overcome Chronic Pain” the author Sarah Warren writes,

“Those who start their athletic training at a young age may be at increased risk of developing overuse injuries because their musculoskeletal system is not fully developed… Many of these injuries will stay with them for their entire lives…”

Sarah Warren.

The author further states that kids’ muscles or connective tissues may not be strong enough to support their fast-growing bones.

So next time you push your child to pursue competitive sports training at a young age, remember this – their achievement is at the cost of their long-term health. It’s fine to have a dream or ambition, but know what you are getting into and its consequences before pushing it too hard. Especially if you are dreaming for others.

“Another part of the problem is that they specialize in one sport far too early. Children
who play two or three sports suffer fewer injuries… because they learn how to move in varied ways…”

Sarah Warren

If left for themselves, that’s what kids would do right? They happily play whatever catches their fancy at the moment. Maybe they are right after all.

So shouldn’t kids train for competitive sports at all?

“The emphasis should be on preparation for future success and health, rather than
performance…”

Sarah Warren

So the next time you feel your kid should run faster than Usain Bolt when they are five, I hope, you realize where (with whom) the problem is!

Destination Infinity

The (Chronic) Pain Relief Secret [Book Review]

The book description for “The Pain Relief Secret: How to Retrain Your Nervous System, Heal Your Body, and Overcome Chronic Pain” by Sarah Warren says, read this book if you want to,

“Cure sciatica, TMJ, iliopsoas syndrome, carpal tunnel syndrome, osteoarthritis pain, Lower back pain relief, and other common pain conditions.”

Since I have sciatica, I thought why not try this book (too). I should admit that many things mentioned in the book (about general bone and muscle health) was an eye-opener.

Could we, because of the forward-bent posture due to our introverted personalities, be hurting our neck and back? Could we be sleeping in a wrong posture? YES! At least in my case, I have been with the wrong posture since as long as I remember. That probably is the root cause of my pain that has been developing slowly over the years.

The book says that the main issue with other methods of treatment esp. physical therapy which we most probably try first is – they cure the symptoms but not the cause. That’s true. I wonder why my doctor didn’t address my wrong posture – I am sure he noticed it. So even if those methods cure us temporarily, the pain is bound to recur. That’s what happened with me.

This book gives you a good foundation on why pain occurs in the first place, what we need to learn from it, and which actions of ours impairs the condition even further. That’s important. If we don’t do that course correction now, we’ll forever be entangled with pain killers and electric-assisted therapy.

Frankly there is a lot of detail on how the muscular-skeletal system in our body works and why pain occurs. I think it’s required because only then the concepts are ingrained into our minds deeply and we become determined to correct our incorrect postures and other bad habits.

The author says that our bodies don’t have to degenerate with time. We have come to accept such things but I know people who are fit even in their 80s! We can retrain our bodies to be fit and stop doing things that are inadvertently hurting us, and that’s what this book teaches us.

The best thing about this book is the individual exercise links (to videos) given for each condition like back pain, sciatica, scoliosis, carpel tunnel, headache, etc. I will definitely add these exercises along with the ones I am already doing.

The only issue is – the book is too long. If you don’t have the patience to read the entire book, just go to page no. 205, follow the exercise video link applicable to your condition, and start doing them.

Fortunately this book is not a lead magnet. There is no ‘push’ or ‘discount coupon’ to buy more expensive guides or training videos. The focus is on self-cure and the author gives the information and the practical methods to achieve that ourselves.

I am quite impressed with somatic treatment philosophy and methods. I wonder why I didn’t know about this before. I have just started with the exercises, I will try to update this page after a while.

I feel, while we could approach other forms of treatments like physiotherapy or surgery for quick relief, a long-term approach to correct the things that have been causing the ailments is equally important. And that’s what this book teaches us.

Go for it.

Destination Infinity

Bloggers Meet after a Long Time

Pradeep of Time & Tide was in Chennai earlier this week. I have been following his blog for some time now so we thought it might be a good idea to meet and get to know the person behind the words. Besides, it’s been ages since any bloggers meet happened.

Since I am not able to travel much due to sciatica, I requested him to come to our house and he graciously accepted. I, my wife, and my mother met Pradeep and his wife. Turns out all of us were/are connected with writing in one way or another!

I think we spoke for a couple of hours but never realized how time flew so quickly. This was like an oasis in the desert as we’ve been having next-to-zero social interactions – the situation accentuated due to the pandemic as well.

There was a time when there were abundant bloggers’ meets and interactions with bloggers on social media, etc. After all, all bloggers can easily connect over their common passion for writing. Nowadays only bloggers who are really passionate about their craft are still writing – so that’s a good reason to (re)form a blogger’s social network.

Maybe we need something like GoodReads for bloggers. I am sure people are doing this already on a personal level, but a more interactive platform is required. Even our previously extremely active chennai bloggers club facebook group is relatively silent.

Anyway, I take this opportunity to thank Pradeep and his wife for taking the time and efforts to travel across the city (from where they were staying) to meet us. It was a great evening

Destination Infinity

Garden Cycle!

Here is the newest addition to our home garden – a cute little garden cycle! We bought it on Amazon.

Destination Infinity

Reality Show LIVE Streaming 24×7?

Bigg Boss Ultimate Season 1 (Tamil) is a reality show in Tamil that’s streaming now on Disney+Hotstar OTT.

They are not just streaming episodes, they are streaming what’s happening inside the house LIVE 24 hours-7 days, delayed by one day. I guess it will be streamed continuously for over two months if we take the previous episodes as a benchmark. Of course, they are also streaming a one-hour summary every night.

The point is, why would anyone want to watch a reality show 24×7?

OK, let’s assume that people don’t watch/cannot watch all day. So they might peek in at times to see what interesting things are happening in the house.

But that’s exactly why the one-hour summary show is for, right?

Is it possible to show interesting content for 24-hours at a stretch? I guess it’s going to be extremely difficult for organizers to retain the ‘LIVE’ audiences for longer periods.

Anyway, our interest to know what’s happening in others’ lives seems to have reached a new pinnacle.

I wonder what’s coming next. Maybe a celebrity might wear a few cameras on themselves and live stream their life 24×7?

Anything might happen in this metaverse-aspiring virtual world. Virtuality seems to be the new Reality

Destination Infinity