Balaji Ramakrishnan

 3) Draupati, the wife of the 5 Pandavas. Worship and ridiculings in Tamil Nadu. Can being wife of 5 men ever be defended? While it can be argued that a woman involving in polyandry should also be treated like polygamy, meaning, women had equal powers, the fact is that men and women were not equal. Women did have restrictions just like today. But, nobility were an exception. Draupati, Kunti, Gandhari, etc. spoke and did what they thought. They simply did not buckle to patriarchy. They complimented men and completed their spouse. Draupati is simply not a lady who could be forced. She did not let her voice unheard in the court of Hastinapur when an injustice was meted out on her. She did consent to marry the Pandavas. So, the usual argument of subjugation of women in Mahabharata falls flat. An other argument against Draupati is that she is promiscous. From time immemorial, having intimate relationship with husbands have never been considered promiscous. Niyoga tradition was also an accep

Mahabharata Unravelled (lesser known facets of a well known history) is a book written by Ami Ganatra ji that tries to bring to our attention several facts of the great ithihas which TV serials on Mahabharata failed to bring. The author has cited original and authentic sources to narrate those nuances and facts. Never once while reading the book did I feel bored. The reason is not just that the ithihas is close to my heart, but the primary reason is the simple yet interesting narration. I recommend this to everyone. https://www.amazon.in/Bloomsbury-Mahabharata-Unravelled-Lesser-Known-Well-Known/dp/9354351271 I am writing this in 2 parts so that each part makes a 2 mins read. 1) Which side did Tamil (Tamil kings) take during Mahabharata? Through out Tamil Nadu, we will be able to see many people supporting the Kauravas. For the most part, the support is just to oppose the side of staunch Hindus, the Pandavas side. Have we ever wondered which side our ancestors took? It's the Pandav

மாதவன் மருகா, மலரிணை பாதமே கதி என பணிந்தேன். நீ தயை புரியாதிருந்திடல் இங்கிதமா? பரிவுடன் அருள்வாய். Son in law of Madhava (i.e. Muruga), I surrendered at your flower-like feet. Is it ethical on your part if you don't take pity on me. Please bless me. Ragam: Behag Lyricist and composer: Shri. Lalgudi Jayaraman

In this blog post I am going to try and articulate the need and importance of political leverage and why the brahmin community needs it for its survival and at a later point of time, thriving. It will also be evident that communities without political leverage would be bound to undergo subhuman treatment from other communities and denial of even fundamental justice. I have used the term community more loosely to mean caste, religion and group of people. Do we need to stick to caste identities? This is an important question every one in the modern era asks. To elaborate, I have seen many brahmins ask, "why do you cling to caste identities?", "why are you so narrow minded?", "are castes relevant today?", "should we be even giving importance to caste anymore?", "should we not annihilate caste?", "I am a peaceful person that lives his life calmly without affecting anyone. Why should I get involved in politics? Why should I be concerned

This is the news item I am going to talk about in this blog post. https://www.storypick.com/husband-glorifying-wife/ I am in linkedin, a professional social media platform. I saw the original post of the man glorifying his wife and felt it was a nice gesture. I also felt that he will invite abuses from the feminist circles for the exact same reason he has been getting now. When you praise your wife for doing a lot of work in home, then you are obviously someone who praises his wife only to keep extracting similar kind of work from her. Indian men are inherently unempathetic and misogynistic. Women in India have to deal with this patriarchal society. Ultra fake feminists are the ones who we should be bothered the least. I do agree, like other developing countries, India has a lot of scope to improve on women's health, status and well being. No doubt. Women do suffer in India, but India is certainly not like those witch hunting, confining to houses type of society. Working men in Ind

Dravidianists and Tamil nationalists keep perpetrating the falsehood that Tamil brahmins don't worship  Lord Murugan. According to them, brahmins go to Murugan temple but they worship the deity as Subrahmanya or Skanda, the "sankrit-vedic" God, not the "Tamil kadavul" Murugan. It is not very unusual for them to make these bombastic claims but what bothers me the most is many people do buy their narrative. The narrative that tamil brahmins don't worship Murugan is so much against the facts that are staring at our face in our everyday life. One can see many Tamil brahmins saying "appane Muruga" like myself. One just need to have a keen sense of observation. That's all it takes. Here are just a few examples that will prove the mischief mongers false. Pithukkuli Murugadas -  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pithukuli_Murugadas Muruganar Swamigal was born CK Subramanian Iyer -  https://swarajyamag.com/culture/muruganar-a-sage-and-a-tamil-poet-of-anc

Tony Joseph on Aryan migration Please do listen to the video where Tony Joseph talks about various migrations into India. This is a very informative video and also a very mischievous one. He conveys his thoughts in such a way that it's almost impossible to pick a fight with him. He always uses the words carefully like "some of them are like this", "there are many waves of migration", etc. He goes on to speak about some political events that happened 2000 years before present that led to "conservatives" taking control and making the society endogamous. He says a very interesting fact. The genetic divide between two castes in any village in India is more than genetic divide between a north European individual and a south European individual. What this implies is, though a north European country and a south European country is far apart, the genetic divide is so low, whereas though two castes are in the same village, the genetic divide between them is hug

DMK, a political wing of the Dravidar Kazhagam, has won TN 2021 state elections hands down. Kudos to people. This is a democratically elected government. I wish DMK fulfills all the aspirations of Tamil people. RSS, BJP, and other Hindu activists fought tooth and nail against the karuppar koottam (again a brainchild of the DK) when the latter abused Kandha Sashti Kavacham, so that the sentiments of Tamil people are not hurt and Tamil people are not bullied by the Anti Hindu DK & co. We did the same when VCK's chief Thiru. Thol Thirumavalavan said, "If a structure has bad (nude/semi nude) figurines, then it's a temple." I am baffled at the insensitivity of the Hindus who voted for the DMK. As an activist who raises his voices against Hinduphobia and the misrepresentations of Hinduism, I feel that people just don't seem to see the threat yet. Either they don't care who says what about Hinduism or they are unaware of what these DK outfits and VCK party men to

Indians society and only Indian society is misogynistic. Other societies are all hunky dory. All good. Compassionate. Indian society therefore needs a lecture on why branding a person (especially female) as fat, short, dark, having curly hair, having pimples, etc. is bad. Pakistanis, for instance don't need any such nyaan. Oh Ramzan! What a great festival it is! Wah! Wah! Wah! Hunky Dory - didn't I say? Now... " How do we civilize the backward Indians? Being a white man, I must lecture them. The burden is on me." So thinks Unilever.  The above video is their solution -- to the so called "sad story of millions of women in this country" -- #StopTheBeautyTest  One may ask how can Indian ad film makers be called white men? Your skin need not be white to be a white man. English education and western supremacist mindset is all that is required to become a white man. Anybody can have that. There is no dearth of such mindsets here among the English educated people.

பாவம் இந்தியர்கள். அவர்கள் அப்பாவிகள். வெள்ளந்திகள். இளகிய மனம் கொண்டவர்கள். தன் எதிரிகளை மன்னிப்பவர்கள். அவர்கள் செய்த தீமைகளை மறந்துவிடுபவர்கள். ஏமாறுவது என்பதும், தனக்கு எதிராக நடந்துகொண்டிருக்கும் சதிகளை உணராமல் இருப்பது என்பதும் அவர்கள் மரபணுவிலேயே பதிந்துவிட்ட ஒன்று. அவர்கள் அப்படித்தான் இருப்பார்கள். முகமது கோரி கொடுத்த 'இனி போர் தொடுக்க மாட்டேன்' என்ற வாக்குறுதியை நம்பியவர்கள். காப்பாற்றப்படும் நிலைக்கு அப்பால் உள்ளவர்கள். மீறி காப்பாற்றினால் ஏன் காப்பாற்றினாய் என்று சீறுபவர்கள்.  தமிழ் எனக்குப் பிடிக்கும் என்று கூறிய ஒரே காரணத்துக்காக கால்டுவெல்லை புகழ்பவர்கள். "ஒரு தமிழ் மாணவன் இங்குஉறங்குகிறான்" என்று ஜியு போப்பின் கல்லறையில் பதித்திருப்பதாக நம்புபவர்கள். வெள்ளைக்காரர்களின் நயவஞ்சக பிரித்தாளும் சூழ்ச்சியை உணராமல் இருப்பவர்கள். தன்னை அடிமைப்படுத்தியவனையே வணங்குபவர்கள். அவன் அங்கீகாரத்திற்கு ஏங்குபவர்கள். மேற்கத்திய மோகம் உடையவர்கள். நோபல், ஆஸ்கர், செவாலியே ஆகியவைதான் அவர்களுக்கு ஆகப்பெரிய விருதுகள். ஹார்வர்ட், ஆக்ஸ்போர்ட், ஆகிய பல்கலைக்கழகங்களில் படித்தவர்

பொன்னியின் செல்வன் முதல் சூரரை போற்று வரை: பொன்னியின் செல்வன் என்ற கல்கி கிருஷ்ணமூர்த்தி அவர்களின் படைப்பை பற்றி தமிழ்நாட்டில் பலரும் கேள்விப்பட்டிருப்பார்கள். பலர் அந்த ஐந்து பகுதி நாவலை படித்தும் இருப்பார்கள். இதை திரைப்படமாக இயக்க இயக்குனர் மணிரத்னம் முயற்சி எடுத்துவருகிறார். இது நல்ல விஷயம் தானே என்று கேட்பவர்களுக்கு - எனக்கு இதில் பல சந்தேகங்களும் தயக்கங்களும் உள்ளன. ஒரு இந்து வெறுப்பு குடும்பத்தில் இருக்கும் ஒருவரால் எந்த அளவுக்கு சோழர்களின் சைவப் பற்றையும் சமய நல்லிணக்கத்தையும் காட்சிப்படுத்திவிட முடியும் என்று தெரியவில்லை. இந்திய சினிமா, இன்று, வரலாற்று முக்கியத்துவம் வாய்ந்த படங்கள், சுயசரிதை சார்ந்த படங்களை நேர்மையாக, இயக்குனர்கள் தங்கள் அரசியல் கருத்துக்களை திணிக்காமல், அதீத மசாலா இல்லாமல் இயக்கும் வல்லமையைப் பெற்றுள்ளதா? இல்லையென்றே தோன்றுகிறது. நடிகர் சூர்யா, ஒடுக்கப்பட்ட சமுதாயத்தில் பிறந்து, சுயமரியாதை திருமணம் செய்துகொண்டு, பிராமண எதிரிகளுடன் போராடி , விமான கம்பெனியை உருவாக்கி இயக்குவதைப்போல் நடித்த சூரரைப் போற்று படமானது, உண்மையில் பிராமண வகுப்பில் பிறந்து, பிராமண முறை