10 Questions on South Asia

(1.) Raazi question: if India had not gotten involved in 1971, would there still be an East Pakistan?

(2.) the Karnataka question: What would a (Indian) Hindu Republic actually look like? Will Rahul G ever be PM?

(3.) the Muslim question: who will inherit the throne from SRK?

(4.) the Ramazan question: is the Indo-Persian culture dying among British Pakistanis (Sadiq Khan wishes everyone a Happy Ramadan)

(5.) the Western question: when/if will K-Jo come out?

(6.) the Academic question: will global philanthropy ever focus IIT/IIM funding?

(7.) the Vidhi question; will there ever be a Pakistani CEO of a Silicon Valley company (Pakistani not Muslim)?

(7b.) Vidhi bonus question; will Pakistanis be allowed to play in IPL? Will Pakistan win the Cricket World Cup again? Will Fawad Khan be allowed to come back to india? Would Pakistan ever get out of POK (she initially slipped Azad Kashmir but then made me change it to POK 🙁

(8.) Fun Z question: will Ranbir choose Alia or Mahira?

(9.) the Deadpool question; why do South Asians allow themselves to be demeaned in Hollywood as cab drivers and nerds. Will there ever be an Indian superhero (a Muslim one is coming; Kamala Khan)?

(10.) final question: who will be the next person to publicly resign from BP?

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satya
satya
5 years ago

(3.) the Muslim question: who will inherit the throne from SRK?
Why is this a Muslim question?

(4.) the Ramazan question: is the Indo-Persian culture dying among British Pakistanis (Sadiq Khan wishes everyone a Happy Ramadan)
But he has to appeal to all Muslims and not just subcontinental ones? But in general the trend is towards purity and globalization which means Arabization for Muslims

(6.) the Academic question: will global philanthropy ever focus IIT/IIM funding?
Not sure what this means

(7.) the Vidhi question; will there ever be a Pakistani CEO of a Silicon Valley company (Pakistani not Muslim)?
Why not? You could have asked the same question for Indians 15 years ago..

(7b.) Vidhi bonus question; will Pakistanis be allowed to play in IPL? Will Pakistan win the Cricket World Cup again? Will Fawad Khan be allowed to come back to india? Would Pakistan ever get out of POK (she initially slipped Azad Kashmir but then made me change it to POK ?

Not sure, but they shouldn’t be until they relent on terrorism/militancy. One thing is clear that Pakistanis are quite mercenary (much more so than Indians) and this is clear in their dealings with the US..This hurts the elites and that is a good thing

(8.) Fun Z question: will Ranbir choose Alia or Mahira?
Who cares (or I don’t at least :))

(9.) the Deadpool question; why do South Asians allow themselves to be demeaned in Hollywood as cab drivers and nerds. Will there ever be an Indian superhero (a Muslim one is coming; Kamala Khan)?
This will change. Already a below average looking Aziz Ansari is (was?) super popular..It’s a matter of time

(10.) final question: who will be the next person to publicly resign from BP?
Kabir, for a sum total of 2 minutes (like the last time..and the time before..and ..) ..This is sort of a joke

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  satya

Don’t take my name in vain. 🙂

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  satya

There’s a song called “Maybe This Time” and I was reminded of that by Satya’s last line:

“Maybe this time I’ll be lucky. Maybe this time he’ll stay…” 🙂

AnAn
5 years ago

1.) Raazi question: if India had not gotten involved in 1971, would there still be an East Pakistan?
No.

(2.) the Karnataka question: What would a (Indian) Hindu Republic actually look like? Will Rahul G ever be PM?
India won’t become a Hindu republic. If it did (which it won’t), India would look the same. Sanathana Dharma is Sarva Dharma. All paths lead to the same goal and all paths might be true.

(3.) the Muslim question: who will inherit the throne from SRK?
No idea.

(4.) the Ramazan question: is the Indo-Persian culture dying among British Pakistanis (Sadiq Khan wishes everyone a Happy Ramadan)
Sadly it is slowly dying in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. It still lives in Afghanistan. If Iran frees herself from Khamenei and openly embraces her Arya greatness; then Iran/Afghanistan/Pakistan/India/Bangladesh becomes a thing and Indo-Persian culture is reborn.

(5.) the Western question: when/if will K-Jo come out?
The horror!

(6.) the Academic question: will global philanthropy ever focus IIT/IIM funding?
Yes. Already under way.

(7.) the Vidhi question; will there ever be a Pakistani CEO of a Silicon Valley company (Pakistani not Muslim)?
I have met Cavium CEO Raghib Husain and he is extremely impressive (I just google searched to make sure he is not an Indian muslim). This question took me back at first. Pakistani Americans are in senior positions throughout Silicon Valley. Folks are jealous of Pakistani American!

(7b.) Vidhi bonus question; will Pakistanis be allowed to play in IPL? Will Pakistan win the Cricket World Cup again? Will Fawad Khan be allowed to come back to india? Would Pakistan ever get out of POK (she initially slipped Azad Kashmir but then made me change it to POK ?
No idea. I don’t know who Fawad Khan is. No short answers on Kashmir! I want an EU of SAARC, Iran, Iraq, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia. Solves Kashmir 🙂

(8.) Fun Z question: will Ranbir choose Alia or Mahira?
I don’t know who any of them are.

(9.) the Deadpool question; why do South Asians allow themselves to be demeaned in Hollywood as cab drivers and nerds. Will there ever be an Indian superhero (a Muslim one is coming; Kamala Khan)?
First world problems! Its okay to be portrayed as nerds and cab drivers and other stuff too. Yes there will be an Indian superhero.

(10.) final question: who will be the next person to publicly resign from BP?
No idea. I hope Vikram and Bharata come back. I think Kabir will resign and come back again! :LOL: Love you Kabir 🙂

Kabir
5 years ago

Fawad Khan is one of the most gorgeous men out there today. If India has any sense, they will bring him back. Pakistani men are frankly much more attractive than Indian men any day of the week 🙂 Must be the West Asian influence…. Also we tend to be much more “gora chitta”. [Tongue firmly in cheek for those who are likely to take offense]

Fawad has legions of Indian fans, all of whom have loved him since that movie in which he played Prince Vikram (I think it was called “Khoobsoorat”?) He also played the gay brother in “Kapoor and Sons” if I recall correctly….

leopard
leopard
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

I thought he made several anti Indian remarks after going back to Pakistan.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  leopard

I think you must be confusing him with someone else. IIRC all he said was that artists shouldn’t be humiliated and he came to India because he was asked. KJO had to make a hostage video saying he would never work with Pakistanis again.

When Politics starts getting in the way of art is when we have a problem.

froginthewell
froginthewell
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

Pakistani men are frankly much more attractive than Indian men any day of the week ?

Pakistani men and women exhibit higher conformity than their Indian analogues do, with Indo-Aryan racially structured aesthetic sense. That said, Fawad Khan looks dumb as a rock.

With all its claimed progressivism, Bollywood should sideline steppe barbarian heritage in favor of its subaltern AASI heritage, and feature dalit heroes from AASI-enriched groups. That said, steppe mitochondrial DNA is exotic for India, and a bit of that would be most welcome 😀

sbarrkum
5 years ago
Reply to  froginthewell

That said, steppe mitochondrial DNA is exotic for India, and a bit of that would be most welcome

Nice, very classy/subtle. Going to use that phrase.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  froginthewell

He’s not dumb. He’s actually a very nice and humble man (based on interviews, I don’t know him personally). He also sings and was part of a band before he became an actor.

V.C.Vijayaraghavan
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

“Pakistani men are frankly much more attractive than Indian men any day of the week ? “..

Your choice, your life 🙂

Kabir
5 years ago

Will Pakistan ever get of out of “POK” ?(Which is a super-offensive term). The place is called “Azad Jammu and Kashmir” and “Gilgit-Baltistan”. The answer is that these areas are de-facto Pakistani territory and are not going anywhere. India can pretend Muzaffarabad is in India (Indian maps show all of the Maharaja’s Kashmir in their country) but these areas are never coming to India. Nothing short of a devastating war is going to give these areas to India. G-B borders China and Pakistan is not giving that up. Plus, the Muslims of G-B and AJK have zero intention of ever joining a Hindu country. Of course if India were to give up Occupied Kashmir (that’s the part that is really Occupied, the part where people are killing themselves and fighting the security officers), perhaps a Kashmiri state could be created. The people of G-B, however, don’t see themselves as Kashmiri. All they want are the full rights of Pakistani citizens, which they have not yet been given (they cannot vote for the National Assembly).

Re”Ramazan” and “Ramadan”: “Ramazan” is still the correct term in Urdu but the increasing Arabization (and fundamentalism) means we’re supposed to say “Ramadhan”. I said “shukriya” to someone (a Careem Driver) because I was speaking Urdu and he very pointedly responded “Jazak Allah” (which is some new thing). “Khuda Hafiz” has already died and become “Allah Hafiz”. I don’t think there is much hope for Indo-Persian culture.

Re K-JO: For all intents and purposes hasn’t he come out? I thought he did in his new book?

Kabir
5 years ago

Yes, you say “Khuda Hafiz” (in my family we have always said “Khuda Hafiz”) and people start looking at you like you are a non-Muslim or insane. Thank General Zia. The idea was that the Persian word “Khuda” applies to any god while “Allah” applies only to the one true God of Islam. General Z seemed to not know that Arab Christians refer to the God of the Bible as “Allah”. Anyway, I have said “Allah Hafiz” quite a bit. Pick your battles and all…

Pretty much everyone knows K-JO is gay. As you said, he wished himself a happy Mother’s Day. Even if he made it totally official, it would not bring down Section 377. India has far larger issues with homosexuality than poor K-JO can ever take on. Let him enjoy his life with his twins.

Is Manish Malhotra Pakistani? I’m super confused (I know it’s not good to assume everyone with a Hindu name is Indian, but it holds true in 99.9 percent of cases).

V.C.Vijayaraghavan
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

With increasing Arabisation Pakistan is becoming Bakistan.

V.C.Vijayaraghavan
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

Dear Sir
” All they want are the full rights of Pakistani citizens, which they have not yet been given (they cannot vote for the National Assembly).” Is this not a classic definition of occupation. Either Azad Kashmir is really Azad or it is a fiction. If it is de facto Pakistani state , then it is a fiction. What about the bits of J&K generously donated by Pakistan to China ? Whose wishes were taken for that , apart from the wishes of few generals and the Chinese government? How can Pakistan dispose as it pleases the territory from which it should have vacated in 1948 as per UN Resolution

Kabir
5 years ago

1) We have separated Gilgit-Baltistan from Azad Kashmir. The people of Gilgit are not Kashmiri though they were part of the erstwhile Maharaja’s state. They fought a rebellion in 1947 in order to join Pakistan. Because of the disputed nature of Jammu and Kashmir, G-B has also not been fully incorporated in the federation.

2) Azad Kashmir has its own national assembly and its own Prime Minister. OK, the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs based in Islamabad also has a say. But AJK has not been incorporated into the federation as a province simply because that would mean we have given up our claim on the rest of the territory (which we are never going to do).

3) If you are talking about the Trans-Karakoram Tract, the agreement between Pakistan and China settling the border states that Kashmir is disputed and in the event of a resolution to the dispute, China will make a new deal with whoever owns that piece of land.

Vikram
5 years ago

1) if India had not gotten involved in 1971, would there still be an East Pakistan?

Almost certainly. The West Pakistani elites were not politically accomodating, and I dont see that changing, whether India was involved or not. The East Bengalis outnumbered the West Pakistanis comfortably, and the terrain was quite alien to the Pak army.

2) What would a (Indian) Hindu Republic actually look like? Will Rahul G ever be PM?

A Hindu Republic would end up with the Constitution of India, one way or another. Just look at Nepal. About Rahul G, I hope not.

3) who will inherit the throne from SRK?

The problem here is more that a lot of young Muslims in India do not respond positively to even the slightest liberal tendencies in potential idols. Just go and see the comments on the videos of Salman Khan celebrating Ganesh utsav.

7) will there ever be a Pakistani CEO of a Silicon Valley company (Pakistani not Muslim)?

Perhaps, but this is not important. The more important question is whether Pakistan will be able to tap into the IT market at any level. This looks highly unlikely at this stage.

7b) will Pakistanis be allowed to play in IPL? Will Pakistan win the Cricket World Cup again? Will Fawad Khan be allowed to come back to india? Would Pakistan ever get out of POK ?

I dont see Pakistanis being allowed to play in the IPL for at least another decade. Winning the WC might be very possible. The only real competition is from India, since cricket is a dying sport almost everywhere else.

Dont know much about the other topics.

leopard
leopard
5 years ago
Reply to  Vikram

Australia ,s.africa, England are quite strong.

Vikram
5 years ago
Reply to  leopard

Apart from Australia to a certain extent, I dont see cricket having a great future in any of these countries, especially England.

Saurav
Saurav
5 years ago

(1.) Raazi question: if India had not gotten involved in 1971, would there still be an East Pakistan?

Yes. It would have been a more enhanced version of Baluchistan or Kashmir Valley. Disturbed but not separate. The army/ Civilians would have found some pro Union voices similar to these areas once the operation was over.

(2.) the Karnataka question: What would a (Indian) Hindu Republic actually look like? Will Rahul G ever be PM?
India will not be a de jure Hindu republic because its too big a hassle. The RSS knows it that its not the mountain its willing to die on. It would much rather focus on the de facto part.
Rahul g will be PM i think in 10 years. Indian public have short memories he would become PM of a 100 odd seat party heading the opposition coalition.

(3.) the Muslim question: who will inherit the throne from SRK?
There are no young muslim actors who look like they would make the mark, someone can just come and blindside us all (like SRK did)

(7b.) Vidhi bonus question; will Pakistanis be allowed to play in IPL? Will Pakistan win the Cricket World Cup again? Will Fawad Khan be allowed to come back to india? Would Pakistan ever get out of POK (she initially slipped Azad Kashmir but then made me change it to POK ?

I dont think Pakistanis will be allowed in IPL. Fawad Khan wont be allowed back. But other actors will work just like Pakistan hockey team might play in India. Every time there is army rule in Pakistan it is huge step backward for democracy, every BJP rule will make it significantly more difficult for Congress to “normalize” with Pakistan. When you try to out nationalist the nationalist this is what you end up with.

India should forget POK. Unilaterally declare LOC as permanent border. Make Ladkakh UT and Jammu a State and restore article 370 to its fullest in the valley.

(9.) the Deadpool question; why do South Asians allow themselves to be demeaned in Hollywood as cab drivers and nerds. Will there ever be an Indian superhero (a Muslim one is coming; Kamala Khan)?

Captain Marvel will be Carol Denvers for the foreseeable future , Kamala Khan i would say has to wait for next 5 years. Marvel missed a trick by not introducing Kamala Khan, she could have served as a love interest for Peter Parker as well.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  Saurav

Thank bhagwan, someone said India should forget “POK”! The LOC should definitely be the border. It would much easier for Indians and Pakistanis. Kashmiri nationalists might not like that solution very much (unless it was a soft border and they could go from Muzaffarabad to Srinagar at will). It is their land that is being divided after all.

Saurav
Saurav
5 years ago

There are many realist Indian who have the same views on POK. I also think largely there is no appetite in India for more land.
But i think there is no leader in India with that amount of political capital. Thats why i am skeptical of Manmohan-Mushraff formuale. Had it gone through Manmohan would have been a 1 term PM.
@Zack Agree completely on the homogenous thing. But I feel its more than that. West Bengal has the same thing just with hindu pops. It has not been doing that great. The BDesh miracle has other elements as well.

Jaggu
5 years ago

1 Where is bongo bongo land?

2 Pork burgers and cowpee cola, with skinny aloo tikkis. Rahul G is already PM (pappu material).

3 KRK

4 Ramædæn Kæreem habibi.

5 K Jo will convert to Islam and become a good heterosexual

6 IIT/IIM is a sausage fest. Who’ll fund that shit??

7 Allah is the CEO of the world and Pakistan ka matlab kya…

7b Inshallah we will invade India and play Islamic Pakistani League in Fatehpur Sikri.

Wallahi, we will win the world cup too. I recall reading that prophecy in Al-Quran. Forgot chapter & verse, but will call Zakir bhai and revert.

Fawad should change name to correct Arabic: Fuæd. Why does he want to go to the Kuffar? He can fetch a great price at my ex-Sheikh’s annual camel & tutti booty fair.

When Pakistan enters a some place it enters properly. Really wedges in mard-e mumin style. We entered Kashmir and set it free, ergo Azad. Don’t worry my charming Vale, Kuffar can’t hold you long. We’ll enter you too and make you happy… Allah wills it.

8 Isn’t Ranbir gay?

9 South Asians love kissing ass. Aryan ass, Greek ass, Persian ass, Mughal ass, Arab ass, British ass and even Chinese ass. Kissed ’em all. What’s special about American?

10 Who cares? Commentariat rulez!

AnAn
5 years ago
Reply to  Jaggu

+1 Jaggu Habibi!
Troubled that you are so familiar with Bollywood, Hollywood and music. Don’t you know they are Haram?:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkweGrNcQsw&feature=youtu.be

Shafiq
Shafiq
5 years ago

East and West Pakistan was the most absurd politico-geographical creation of post WW2 era. Even if there were no hostile India in between, just a sea of water 1500 miles apart, the chimera wouldn’t have a much longer life.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  Shafiq

Agreed it didn’t make much sense.

But I think if there were not a hostile country in the middle or some land corridor connecting the two (just as the Palestinians want a land corridor between Gaza and the West Bank) it may have worked better. Still it all depended on how the West Pakistanis treated the Bangladeshis and we all saw how that worked out.

There was an alternate plan for a third Bengali dominion that would have included Calcutta. But Congress wasn’t willing to part with that city.

AnAn
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

Kabirji, I think East Pakistan would have stayed in Pakistan if not for Indian intervention.

I also think that it was easier for West and East Pakistan to stay together than it is for the West Bank and Gaza to stay together now. Do you agree?

BTW, I believe that Israelis need to do right by Palestine and my comment about substantial tension between the West Bank and Gaza is unrelated to Israeli policy and Israeli interests.

Among many other things; public opinion in Gaza has long been more Islamist than in the West Bank. It is possible that 12 years of Ikhwan (Muslim Brotherhood) rule might have reduced the popularity of Islamism; but this is unknowable because Gazans don’t have freedom of art, thought, intuition and feeling.

BTW, why are you not sharing your thoughts on current events in Gaza?

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  AnAn

Neither Gaza nor the West Bank has treated the other like a colony. Gaza is a prison and the keys are in Israel’s hands. The West Bank is a bunch of Bantustans. West Pakistan treated East Pakistan like it was hostile territory. I don’t think the situations are comparable.

I’m not sharing my thoughts on current events in Gaza because the situation is too horrible to contemplate. The Palestinians are on their side of the “border” (really on their side of the prison) and Israel is shooting them on sight. Let’s not even talk about it.

To return to the subcontinent: I think 3 dominions (India, Pakistan and a Greater Bengal including Calcutta) would have been the most viable solution. Perhaps Kashmir could have been a fourth nation state. India would have less territory but be more manageable. The “Kashmir issue” would never have existed. Bangladesh (+ Calcutta) would have always been there and there would have been no 1971 War. Pakistan would also lack AJK and G-B, but there would have been no reason for the intense India phobia (or Hinduphobia) that we have presently. Four nation-states on the subcontinent instead of the 3 we have now would have been fine.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

Palestine is important. But I haven’t finished processing each day’s horrible events before the next day’s unfold. I can just link you back to my personal blog.

https://kabiraltaf.wordpress.com/2018/05/12/goliath-life-and-loathing-in-greater-israel/

This was written during the last bit of bloodletting in Gaza that occurred in 2014, but the basic facts haven’t changed.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

Here’s an article on current events in Palestine from “The Nation”

https://www.thenation.com/article/palestinians-engaged-in-nonviolent-protest-israel-responded-with-a-massacre/

Jaggu
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

There will be at least 10 independent states in India:

Pakistan (qaum mulk saltanat painda tabinda bad!!),
Kashmiristan (joint admin by China and Pak),
Dalitistan (central indian tribals and other shudras),
Madrasi Eelam (invades and rules ceylon, full-on LTTE),
Gorkhaland (merges with Nepal; chinese protectorate),
Christiland of NE India (run by American evangelicals),
Maratha rashtra (bits of maharashtra minus Maoland),
Rajputana (desert city states),
Bongodesh (sum of bangladesh, WB, assam and rohingya)
and
Maoland.

Prophesized by Chaudry Rehmat Ali (RA). Will come to pass by 1470 AH.

hoipolloi
hoipolloi
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

“But I think if there were not a hostile country in the middle or some land corridor connecting the two…”

A land corridor between East and West Pakistan that would go through the heartland of Hindustan spanning 1500 miles; I would call this a wet dream.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  hoipolloi

Well, obviously, that’s why the whole thing only lasted 25 years….

The lack of a land corridor added to the presence of a hostile enemy in the middle added to the way W. Pakistanis treated E. Pakistanis meant the secession of E. Pakistan was inevitable.

It would have made much more sense for a Greater Bengal to have been carved out in 1947 along with Pakistan and Hindustan. Would have avoided a lot of problems later.

AnAn
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

Kabir, we disagree. Pakistan and Bangladesh had a very inexpensive sea route linking them. Land bridges would have made little difference. On the other hand a close friendship/alliance/free trade agreement/free travel agreement with India would have helped Bangladesh and Pakistan stay together. India would have helped to avoid instability.
+++++++++++++++
In traditional Indian thinking the daughter remains part of the family, just as Indira was part of Nehru’s family. A married woman equally has two families and two homes. She (in Artha shastra) retains property rights to her father’s wealth. This is also the case in Sharia.

In ancient India a girl has a very special warm relationship with her Mama (maternal uncle) who protects and helps her. There are also examples of this among the Mughal royals.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

Sea routes are not the same as land corridors. Anyway, the whole experiment made no sense. The Bengalis should have gone their own way from day one. And the current Pakistan makes a lot more sense culturally and geographically. We don’t have to worry about the hostile country except along the Working Boundary and the Line of Control. Pre 1971, we had a whole other border with the enemy to defend.

In Pakistan, you send your daughter off to her real home. She then belongs to them. She is only a guest in her father’s house. I have watched enough Hindi dramas to know that Hindus think the same way. “You left on the doli. Only come back on the funeral pyre”. Women can visit their “maika” but if they stay too long, everyone (including the bhais and bhabis) starts getting very upset. The parental home now belongs to the bhabi, not to the girl.

The Gandhi dynasty runs through Rahul. Priyanka and Robert Vadra aren’t getting near the Prime Minister’s House, not if Sonia ji is still running the show (which I think she is). She was the bahu, not the beti and therefore inherited her saas’s role.

hoipolloi
hoipolloi
5 years ago

Q: Will Rahul G ever be PM?

A: He is more like a seat warmer for Priyanka G. You heard it here first. 🙂

Kabir
5 years ago

She’s not a Gandhi. She’s a Vadra. So she’s out. Women belong to their husband’s family after marriage. That is traditional South Asian thinking.

girmit
girmit
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

But then Indira was not a Nehru, that still worked out. Benazir married out of the Bhutto family. The aura around these bloodlines is so strong that they can accommodate new names.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  girmit

Indira essentially left her husband and moved in with her father (correct me if I’m wrong). Benazir did marry Zardari, but she kept her name. Benazir Zardari would never have become PM of Pakistan. Benazir Bhutto did. The Bhutto name is so important that, post her death, all 3 of her children became Bhutto-Zardaris as opposed to Zardaris (which is what Pakistan’s patriarchal system thinks they are).

Children belong to their father and not to their mother. At least this is how most people in South Asia think. If Priyanka calls herself Priyanka Gandhi, she may have a chance. Priyanka Vadra, no way.

This new thing of naming your children Mirza-Malik or Malik-Mirza is only popular among progressives. It hasn’t yet caught on to the masses.

girmit
girmit
5 years ago

(1.) Raazi question: if India had not gotten involved in 1971, would there still be an East Pakistan?
I’d guess yes, though it would have been a longer bloodier conflict, and Pak-Bangladesh wouldn’t have any of the current cordiality that they now enjoy. The question is, what if India joined the conflict later and exploited a vulnerable west pak? what if the USA intervened more decisively in favour of west pak?

(2.) the Karnataka question: What would a (Indian) Hindu Republic actually look like? Will Rahul G ever be PM?
Looks possible that Rahul G may retreat from PM ambitions. He’s had no campaign success to speak of. Congress looks happy to take the backseat in the Karnataka govt formation, hinting at the likelihood that they will be cooperative players in a regional party coalition for 2019.
(6.) the Academic question: will global philanthropy ever focus IIT/IIM funding?
Do they need more funding? Their main output isn’t research, but a pool of unusually analytical future Mckinsey associates.

(7.) the Vidhi question; will there ever be a Pakistani CEO of a Silicon Valley company (Pakistani not Muslim)?
Yes, but they don’t trail Indians in as much as they trail a few overachieving Indian ethnicities.

Jaggu
5 years ago
Reply to  girmit

Janitor bible says: Number of Indian students in the US is around 190,000. Number of Pakistani students is around 6,000.

Even if we assume equal CEO-making ability in Indian and Pakistani students, a Pakistani CEO is 32 times less likely. Or put it another way, there’s one Pak CEO for every 32 Indian ones.

hoipolloi
hoipolloi
5 years ago
Reply to  Jaggu

“Or put it another way, there’s one Pak CEO for every 32 Indian ones.”

There is this question of 1:1 parity with India that needs to be met, though.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  hoipolloi

This is quite stupid, given that India has over 1 billion people and Pakistan has 210 million as of the most recent count.

Perhaps we can compare Indian-Americans and Pakistani-Americans and see how the communities are doing socioeconomically. Are there significant differences? I would guess that there aren’t and this would show that Intra-South Asian issues don’t really matter once you reach the US and everyone in the majority community thinks you are a uniform sea of “brown”. There are Indian-American cab drivers and Pakistani-American cab drivers but also super rich Pakistani-American doctors (the people we used to know back in DC).

hoipolloi
hoipolloi
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

On parity between certain neighbors, “This is quite stupid, given that India has over 1 billion people and Pakistan has 210 million as of the most recent count. ”

Kabir, I am glad you realize this. Sooner the Pakistani Generals, politicians, and assorted Pak-nationalists realize this the better for peace in south Asia. I can go on pontificating but just a word to the wise is enough. Have a good day.

Kabir
5 years ago
Reply to  Kabir

You don’t seem to get that both India and Pakistan are sovereign nation states and both have nuclear weapons. Parity makes sense in certain contexts and not in others. If there is a war, it’s not going to be a picnic for you. We can make your life hell.

The number of CEOs in Silicon Valley is a context where Parity is meaningless. There are more Indians in the world, thus there are more Indians in the US, therefore more Indian CEOs. Percentages of CEOs would be a better comparison.

Your Indian nationalism is showing and it’s not attractive. Peace.

Brown Pundits