Story Time - A Beautiful Mind - A movie of 2001 - Psychiatry drugs are dangerous...

In the 2001 film A Beautiful Mind, John Nash (played by Russell Crowe) initially resists psychiatric treatment, viewing his delusions as real. After involuntary hospitalization, he undergoes insulin shock therapy (a now-discredited 1950s treatment) and starts antipsychotic medication, but he soon stops taking the pills because they dull his intellect and emotional capacity—he complains they make him feel "foggy" and hinder his mathematical work.

Later in the movie, after a relapse, Nash decides to manage his schizophrenia without resuming medication. He learns to rationally acknowledge and ignore his hallucinations (e.g., realizing the imaginary girl never ages), allowing him to return to work and achieve recognition, including the Nobel Prize. The film portrays medication as helpful initially but not the ultimate cure; Nash's recovery comes through personal willpower, insight, and support from his wife.

The movie takes significant liberties with reality. In real life, John Nash was hospitalized multiple times in the 1950s–1960s, received insulin shock therapy (which he described as torturous), and took early antipsychotics (like Thorazine and Stelazine) under pressure. 

In real life, he stopped all medication in 1970, refusing it thereafter because of severe side effects that blunted his thinking. His symptoms gradually remitted in his later years (starting in his 50s–60s), which he attributed to aging and rational rejection of delusional thinking, not drugs. Nash recovered without ongoing psychiatric drugs.

Here is a comparison of Nash's Reel Life vs Real Life vis-a-vis psychiatry medicines.

Feature	The Movie (Reel)	The Real Life
Hospitalization	Depicts one primary, traumatic stay.	He was hospitalized multiple times over several decades (McLean, Trenton Psychiatric, etc.).
Insulin Shock	Shown as a brutal, one-time "cure" attempt.	He underwent Insulin Coma Therapy (inducing comas with insulin) which was common in the 50s but eventually abandoned.
Medication	Suggests he took "newer" drugs in 1994.	Nash actually stopped taking all psychiatric medication around 1970.
Method of Recovery	He "decides" to ignore the hallucinations.	He described a gradual "remission of the mind," where he essentially chose to stop entertaining the irrational thoughts through sheer intellectual effort.

In the context of Bharat, we will have exponential rise of mental health issues with omnipresent wireless technology, increase in number of mobile towers, the proliferation of 5G, toxic work culture in many companies, corporate slavery, the irrelevance of degree and higher education offered by many colleges, outsourcing of kitchen to Zomato or Swiggy and both working parents with their kids being raised in creche.

It's time for waking up...

Mattur: Where Sanskrit Walks, Talks, and Lives...

On the banks of the Tunga River in Karnataka lies a village that quietly defies one of modern India’s strongest assumptions — that ancient languages must remain confined to textbooks and temples.

Mattur speaks Sanskrit.
Not ceremonially.
Not occasionally.
But every day.

A Living Language, Not a Museum Piece

In Mattur, Sanskrit is not preserved under glass. It flows through daily life.

Children ask their parents questions in Sanskrit.
Shopkeepers bargain in Sanskrit.
Morning greetings, casual jokes, even arguments — all unfold in a language most of the world considers “dead”.

“भवतः नाम किम्?”
What is your name?

This is not performance. This is practice.

How Did This Happen?

The revival of spoken Sanskrit in Mattur began in the early 1980s, driven not by government mandate, but by community choice.

Inspired by Sanskrit scholars and supported by organizations such as Samskrita Bharati, villagers decided to reclaim Sanskrit as a spoken, functional language — not just a ritual one.

The result was extraordinary:

• Sanskrit became the medium of daily conversation

• Schools began teaching modern subjects through Sanskrit

• Children grew up bilingual (or trilingual), fluent in Sanskrit, Kannada, and English

Ancient Grammar, Modern Minds

What surprises many visitors is how modern Mattur is.

Residents include:

• Engineers

• Doctors

• Software professionals

• Academics working in India and abroad

Far from isolating them, Sanskrit seems to sharpen thinking.
Its precise grammar, formal structure, and rule-based clarity — perfected by Pāṇini over 2,000 years ago — train the mind in logic, sequence, and abstraction.

It’s no coincidence that linguists and computer scientists from around the world visit Mattur. Sanskrit’s structure often mirrors how humans wish programming languages behaved — clear, deterministic, and elegant.

Breaking the Myths

Let’s clear a few misconceptions.

“Only Brahmins speak Sanskrit there.”
❌ False. People from all communities participate.

“It’s just for tourists.”
❌ False. Sanskrit is used when no one is watching.

“They reject modernity.”
❌ False. Mattur is digitally connected and globally aware.

Mattur does not reject the present — it integrates the past into it.

Why Mattur Matters

Mattur isn’t just a linguistic curiosity. It’s a civilizational statement.

It tells us:

• Languages don’t die — they are abandoned

• Tradition survives best when it is lived, not enforced

• Modernity does not require cultural amnesia

At a time when globalization flattens identities, Mattur proves that rootedness and progress are not opposites.

A Village That Asks a Question

Mattur quietly asks India — and the world — a question:

If a small village can make an ancient language breathe again, what else have we forgotten that still wants to live?

Bhajan Clubbing: When Devotion Walks Onto the Dance Floor...

Something unusual is happening in India’s cultural landscape.

In the same cities where nightclubs pulse with EDM and Bollywood remixes, another kind of sound is rising—“Hare Ram… Hare Krishna…” but with bass drops.
“Om Namah Shivaya…” but with synthesizers.
Bhajans, but remixed, amplified, danced to.

Welcome to the phenomenon called Bhajan Clubbing.

It’s more than a trend.
It’s a cultural statement.

What Exactly Is Bhajan Clubbing?

Bhajan Clubbing is a hybrid cultural movement where:

• devotional music meets modern electronic beats,

• often performed in clubs, lounges, festivals, rooftops, and campus parties.

It’s not about mocking devotion.

It’s about bringing devotion into spaces where the youth already are.

Think of it as spirituality with a sound system.

Enjoy Bhajan Clubbing by Sati Ethnica.

And here we go... My own version of Bhajan Clubbing - alone at the roof top at an eerie hour of the night. Enjoy...

Reclaiming #WhoWeAre...

Why Is Bhajan Clubbing Becoming So Popular?

1. Youth want spirituality without walls

Today’s generation is not necessarily “less religious.”
They are simply less formal about how they express it.

If meditation can happen on an app,
If yoga can happen on a rooftop,
Then devotion can happen on a dance floor.

2. Cultural confidence is rising

For years, Indian pop culture was hesitant to showcase Hindu devotional themes.
But now:

• Shiva tattoos

• Hare Krishna hoodies

• Rudraksha bracelets

• Sanskrit chants in EDM

The youth are reclaiming identity, not hiding it.

3. A fusion of energy: devotion + dance

A traditional bhajan lifts the mind.
A club beat lifts the body.
Put them together, and you get a full-spectrum experience:
physical, emotional, spiritual.

4. It feels tribal, primal, and modern at the same time

There is something ancient about rhythmic chanting.
It mirrors the energy of old kirtans and temple festivals.
Bhajan Clubbing is simply a new-age kirtan with LED lights.

Is It Disrespectful? The Debate

Some purists feel mixing devotion with club beats is irreverent.
They worry that the sanctity of bhajans is diluted when paired with neon lights and DJ mixers.

But others argue:

• Bhakti is meant to be lived, not just preserved.

• The divine does not fear modernity.

• If youth chant Krishna’s name at 2 AM instead of getting lost in meaningless noise, isn’t that a win?

The debate is not about music.
It’s about cultural evolution.

A Larger Cultural Shift

Bhajan Clubbing is part of a bigger movement:

• Sufi EDM

• Shiva Trap

• Sanskrit Lo-fi

• Mantra Techno

• Mahadev Rap

This is not saffronization.
This is not rebellion.
This is India becoming comfortable in its own skin.

For decades, Indian pop culture borrowed Western aesthetics.
Now it is remixing its own heritage into the global soundscape.

It’s not imitation.
It’s assertion.

What Does Bhajan Clubbing Reveal About Today’s Youth?

• They are spiritual, but not ritualistic.

• They crave community, but not rigid structure.

• They seek meaning, but in their own language.

• They want heritage without heaviness.

And above all—
they want joy in devotion,
not guilt, not fear, not formality.

Conclusion: The Dance Floor as the New Courtyard of Devotion

Bhajan Clubbing is not a replacement for temple bhajans.
It is an extension.
A new doorway into the old soul of India.

It shows that devotion is not limited to time, place, or rhythm.
If the heart moves with the beat,
devotion can rise anywhere—
in a temple courtyard or a crowded club.

The divine does not mind the venue.
The divine listens only to the intention.

From portraying Rahim Chacha in Sholay as a Muslim victim to belittling Lord Shiva in PK to creating a fictitious Muslim character in Mission Mangal who was refused by Hindus for a rented apartment - the narrative of Bollywood is crumbling under the pressure of Dhurandhar

1. Sholay – Rahim Chacha as the Muslim victim

This is often cited as an early Bollywood trope where:

• the Muslim character is helpless,
  
  

• the Hindu characters rescue or avenge him,
  
  

• the film reinforces a “secular harmony through victimhood” script.
  
  

For decades, Bollywood used Muslim characters as symbols of suffering, moral purity, or loyalty — sometimes to signal “Nehruvian secularism.”

2. PK – Scenes perceived as belittling Hindu beliefs

Many viewers felt:

• the satire was disproportionately aimed at Hindu rituals and gods,
  
  

• whereas Islamic or Christian institutions were barely touched,
  
  

• suggesting selective bravery or political convenience.
  
  

This intensified distrust toward certain filmmakers who were accused of mocking Hindu faith while avoiding criticism of others.

3. Mission Mangal – The fictional Muslim scientist denied a rented flat

This scene suggested:

• Hindus discriminate against Muslims in housing,
  
  

• reinforcing a stereotype,
  
  

• despite being fabricated and not part of the real ISRO story.
  
  

To many audiences, this felt like importing political messaging into an otherwise apolitical scientific film.

Why People Are Now Calling This “Dhurandhar” Pressure

The word “Dhurandhar” has become a shorthand for:

• unapologetic assertion of Hindu identity,
  
  

• calling out biased symbolism,
  
  

• rejection of “one-sided secularism”,
  
  

• reclaiming cultural narratives.
  
  

Audiences today are:

- questioning stereotypes

- challenging anti-Hindu portrayals

- rejecting guilt-driven storytelling

- supporting content that reflects cultural pride

- noticing inconsistencies in “selective sensitivity”

This shift has brought discomfort to filmmakers who were used to a monopoly on defining “secular messaging.”

Thus the phrase “Bollywood’s narrative is crumbling” reflects a cultural correction, not censorship.

What Changed?

1. Social Media Accountability

Bollywood no longer controls the narrative.
Audiences analyze, fact-check, and call out bias instantly.

2. Rise of Alternate Cinema

Films like Kashmir Files, Kantara, Karthikeya, Tanhaji, 12th Fail, etc., show a new appetite for rooted storytelling.

3. Public Fatigue With Certain Tropes

Viewers are tired of:

• Hindu caricatures
  
  

• victimhood templates
  
  

• forced message-messaging
  
  

• moral lectures disguised as entertainment
  
  

4. Assertion of Cultural Identity

A De-colonized, self-aware generation sees itself not through Bollywood lenses but through history, tradition, and civilizational pride.

Is Bollywood Changing? Absolutely.

We now see:

• fewer “Hindu villain–Muslim victim” scripts
  
  

• more balanced portrayals
  
  

• cautious treatment of religious themes
  
  

• growing demand for authenticity
  
  

• less tolerance for ideological propaganda
  
  

This is not a collapse — it is a realignment.

Bollywood’s old secular-victimhood formula is losing grip.
A culturally confident audience — “Dhurandhar Bharat” — is demanding respect, balance, and authenticity.

Hindi cinema is entering a phase where narratives must match reality, not ideology.