Letters to the Editor: Neo definition

Democracy is just the opposite of autocracy, a regime practised in certain nations until now to the great dismay of the people of those nations. China, North Korea, and a few Arab nations still follow autocracy. It was in the USA that the first principle of democracy was formulated by the then-US president, Abraham Lincoln, who became president of the USA after a bloody civil war. Lincoln formulated a new system called democracy, which means ‘government of the people, by the people, and for the people’.

After independence, India too, under Pt. Nehru, declared itself a democratic nation under the Congress Party. But very sadly, in India, some secular political parties, namely the Congress, SP, Shiv Sena (UT), and RJD, changed the very concept of democracy. According to them, democracy meant ‘government of the family, by the family, and for the family.’

Dr Ashim Chowdhury,

Guwahati.

The 29-year-old is often referred to as the ‘best fast bowler’ in the world. Spectators simply love his yorkers, which can deceive the best of batsmen. The self-effacing right-arm bowler started off as a limited-over specialist but blossomed into a man for all seasons for the Indian team. Australian legend Dennis Lillee has compared the Indian to his compatriot, the peerless Jeff Thomson—a rare honour. Batsmen all over seem clueless about the bowler's ball release and angle of delivery. He has a short run-up and changes pace as he nears his bowling crease. Uncanny ball release after hours of planning has been the hallmark of the bowler. Always sporting a grin, his peculiar bowling action has bamboozled both domestic and international batsmen. With a firm grip on the ball and the mastery of making the ball spring up after hitting the deck, the Gujarat pacer does not give away much during the release from his wrist. Amazing control and the ability to do an encore separate him from the tearaway fast bowlers. Due to his accuracy, he is the captain's man Friday in crunch situations. The ability to hold his nerve makes him a special bowler. After an 11-month layoff, Jasprit Bumrah has returned. And he holds the key to India's 50-over World Cup chances. Bumrah has set the tone with his splendid performance in the first game against Ireland.

Dr Ganapathi Bhat,

(gbhat13@gmail.com.)

Honouring eminent singer T.M. Soundararajan

The unveiling of the bronze life-size statue of the eminent playback singer T.M. Soundararajan in Madurai, Tamil Nadu a few days ago, is a huge and deserving honour to the late divine singer for his unparalleled contribution to Tamil film music for well over six decades. No doubt, his contemporaries were also great, but TMS, as he was popularly known, was just unmatchable. It is well known that TMS had the ability and smarts to adapt his voice to different actors in different situations. He could elevate and depress. He could switch from the classical to the colloquial in a jiffy. A decade has passed since his departure, and TMS’s vibrant and robust voice, which would sound like a temple bell, continues to enthral Tamil audiences across the world.

In the book TMS, Oru Panpattu Sarithiram ('TMS, A Cultural History'), his biographer Vamanan writes, “The BBC once made a documentary film on Frank Sinatra, in which it says that even the mildest of actors like Gary Cooper and Spencer Tracy had this quality that they would explode at any moment.” Sinatra had tonnes of it. This is what helped him make an impact. If you can appreciate that, you can get at least the minutest idea about him. “And TMS had such an exploding quality in him in many of his songs”, he concludes.

Ranganathan Sivakumar,

(siva19kumar@gmail.com.)