THE DIRTY WORLD OF ART!

The recent news of Rana Kapoor, the disgraced founder of Yes Bank buying paintings from Priyanka Gandhi has shaken the country.

It became an object of jokes and many questions, rightly so, ascribing most of it's trajectory to the age old practice of placating powerful politicians. In this case, a powerful family in the "business" of politics.

Is Priyanka Gandhi an artist? No. When did she become one? Or is she like Ms. Mamata Banerjee whose "work of art" sold for an astounding Rs. 6 crore. That "painting" when shown to The world, raised all goes and cries. Again, rightly so!

For that painting would have put even a 10 year old artist(read drawing/painting enthusiast) to shame.

Like wise, Mrs. A K Antony's painting sold in crores.

This is just one incident. I again feel, of an urge to Placate powerful people.

But is the world of art, really innocent. And here I mean the genuine work of art , be it Picasso or Salvador Dali or a Vincent Van Gogh or other great, if not greater names, of past.

The world of art galleries and these genuinely exquisite work of art Is a pleasure to the eyes of any common art lover BUT it is also a genuine pleasure for many devious objectives.

Paintings are a Currency!

Paintings, has emerged as a viable solid source of funds for many terror organisations, leaving aside others in drugs financing or Arms and guns.

Let me give an example. I am passionate about reading any and every material on terrorist organisations.

And couple of years ago, it came to light that how 'Islamic State, the most dangerous and we'll funded terror network in the world, used paintings As a source of funds.

Have you heard of "Geneva Free Port".  Geneva is a Swiss city and Switzerland has been known as the best place (apart from Cayman Islands, some banks in Hong Kong, Mauritious etc) for it's discreet banking system. It is a tax Haven and had been used for Hoarding black money.

But Swiss is actually a Haven for others too. In this case, paintings and other work of art. And herein comes Geneva Free Port. It is kinda bank, in Geneva, for keeping only work of art.

Few years back, stolen work of art, sourced from Syria, was found in Geneva Free Port. It lent more credence to the idea that world of art is a big source of funds.

Let's understand that, like a good real estate, a genuine, sought, loved and popular work of art never depreciates. Its value only increases. 

In fact, again few years back Beaufort Securities of Mauritius was investigated for buying paintings. These kinda agencies specialise in channeling I'll gotten and huge black money in the direct system, slowly. And paintings works. How? They buy at a price ( can be shown as an invetsment Or an expense). It is kept and later can be sold off. It has guaranteed returns.

More importantly, there are extremely rich people who are equally  extremely crazy about acquiring paintings or other works of art. It satisfied their ego

For all we know, many of them keep these paintings in their private collection, far away from prying eyes of media, investigative agencies and common people. It is an ego booster.

For God's sake, even a Rana Kapoor has been found with 62 costly paintings!

Money is paid for them, right? Assuming he paid 2 Crore for a Priyanka Gandhi painting, imagine how much he would have spent for other 61 paintings.

Even at RS. 2 Crore ( and it is very less) , it comes to approx RS. 125 crores.

I am not saying he picked them from any wrong source but look at the money.

Now let's go back To those wealthy genuine art lovers who can go to any limit to procure a painting.

And here come the Nexus. Often terrorist organizations, themselves can execute a campaign to steal paintings from renowned galleries across the world, esp in Europe and sell them for a huge Price.

Or professional art thieves can be hired to carry out the needful. Maybe the thieves don't even know who is the final buyer (not the rich collector, mind you but the terror/drugs/gunsl smugglers).

The art is stolen, and while exchanging through multiple hands, reach Final buyer, for millions of dollars.

Art is a secured solid source of funds for nefarious activities.

In November 2019,in a  famous art gallery in Dresden (a city in Germany), three most exquisite work of art was stolen. Experts said its value can not be fathomed .

Thieves don't keep these work of art for themselves . It is sold to someone. For millions and millions of dollars.

It is kept in places like Geneva Free Port!

A proper infrastructure is there, for it.

And there are "art restorers", people who restore damaged paintings or recreate paintings. In wake of a theft, sometimes they are hired by museums and galleries to recreate the stolen painting and kept at the same place. A common person, even after spending hours, cant make out the difference.

The world of art is sublimely beautiful. It encourages, it motivates us, the common people. It makes us dream.

But there are some who look at it as a source of funds.

Isn't it interesting?

FROM CHINA, WITH LOVE!

Life in the times of Covid 19

Remember the movie “Mars Attacks” and US president Jack Nicholson trying to fight the aliens. Maybe in the last two months, every day we have relived  the movie. Just that Mars has been replaced by a Virus.

At midnight of 31st December 2019 when we were busy wishing one and all a happy 2020, seldom did we know that this might turn out as the biggest irony of our lives. Within a gap of 60 days, the world faced a challenge, hitherto unknown. The challenge to survive!

While days turned into weeks and week into months, we could see the worst nightmare, the world could ever imagine , unravel in front of our own eyes. Glued to TV sets and news apps on our smart phone, we just saw countries and continents become victims of Novel Corona virus. Citadels of Renaissance like Italy crumbled while US found itself groping to survive. 

Maybe globalisation too assumed a new proportion when entire world globally and  collectively wanted to fight this menace. Social media was abuzz from calls of world leaders to common people , praying for the well being of all.

The world was united in its hope, in its valour , in its vigour and in its hatred for the virus and its source.

Whether it was because of abnormal eating practices in China or a human experiment that went horribly wrong in one of its biological laboratory in Wuhan, it was clear to all that communist China was the source of this deadly disease.

How was it possible that while world suffered, many economic hot spots of China remained unscathed. Or even while more than 10000 people died in Italy (not counting the other countries) in Wuhan it was only 2000. Unless China did what it does really well I.e. brushing news under the carpet.

With its global ‘agents’ like WHO working overtime to resurrect the global image of China, it is not a difficult task. Let’s not forget that human rights and human life really doesn’t matter much to the communist regime in China.

Barely three decades ago, it didn’t feel restrained to run tanks over its own people in Tianmen square, then it can, without batting an eyelid, can actually ensure that deaths of millions is never published.

And then Corona Virus came knocking at our own doors! 

We knew it will but when it did, it left us gasping! Collectively our Government led by Honourable Prime Minister and all states, officials embarked upon a humongous task to keep the virus and its spread, at a bay. The effort to ensure minimal spread and to break the “chain” was ‘initially successful’.

Our PM again let the world know why he is hailed as a statesman! 

He faced the challenge head on and led the counter measure, from the front.

Let us not forget the fact that since January, we have had a busy schedule. Initially with Trump coming to India, followed by the jihadi  Islamists indulging in mass rioting and killing in National Capital. While the islamist breakaway forces at Shaheen Bagh, added fuel to the fire.


Nevertheless, union government planned and carried out multiple steps to  obtain the virus. Be it thermal  checking in all international airports or getting Indians, from abroad, back home. Nothing was left to chance!

However, which government can ever predict human weakness. Many patients escaped from Quarantine. It was sheer efficiency of the officials, that most of these cases were immediately attended. But the vagary was already done! Virus started spreading.

 PM announced lockdown and it was the best time to announce and create isolation, in order to contain the virus. In such a time, almost all leaders, cutting across the party lines, came and supported our PM. While the respective implementation at state level has been different, with some states doing better than others.

Of course, we saw Leader of Congress party Mr. Rahul Gandhi, also doing what he does best (like China). He embarked upon a frustrating  campaign of immature criticism of the government in everything it did. Need was for him to unconditionally rally behind the PM but Mr. Gandhi being Mr. Gandhi, refrained from doing so.

Writer Arthur Basham had written a book called – The wonder that was India! He was right, for we are indeed a wonder. Often frustratingly so!

In fact despite the size of our country and its population, the initial numbers of positive corona cases were minimal so much so that many countries were at a loss. This speaks volumes about the proactive measures of our Government at centre.

But by the fag end of March (after Lockdown was announced) the challenge has increased manifold with News of an Islamist congregation called Jamaat Tablighi and its thousands of members, who despite requests from police and administration, went ahead with their religious meeting.

And now , it appears that many of them were positive cases of corona virus. It gets even worse, many of these people travelled to different states and now news of new cases of corona has come from those places.

As if it was not enough, from the day PM announced the lockdown, we saw migrant labourers willing to walk hundreds of kilometres to reach their villages! It was shocking. Media Gleefully covered the news, rather than convincing upon the migrant workforce to stay out.

What can a government do, in such a scenario?

The PM, had gone to the extent of making a request with folded hands. He shared case studies of notable success against corona virus and exhorted the country to self isolation. In my over 4 decades of existence on Earth, I have never seen any PM making such a strong and emotional appeal.

Adequate preparations were made but in face of such a manifestation of criminal intent as exhibited by Tablighi Jamaat, I wonder what can a Govt do. The damage has been done and the spreaders/carriers of this virus too have done their jobs. Had home ministry taken any tough measures,  assured the media and liberal ecosystem would have criticised the government.

From day one, there was a resistance amongst certain portion of the Muslim population towards lockdown. Perhaps because it was requested by Modi. Streams of tick tock videos asking Muslim youth to not follow lockdown/isolation rules, flooded the social media. Senior members of the community were almost adamant about their right to congregate in mosques.

In Maharashtra, state government decided that all Corona virus dead will be cream aged and not buried. Within 24 hours, Muslim leader of the alliance, Nawab Mali,, tweeted that this order will be withdrawn. Why should it be withdrawn?

Is religion more important than nation. For many Islamists, the answer is yes. Of course, the liberal intellectuals will be willing to oblige them even more.

The days ahead are going to be very tough. 1st April to 10th April shall show the trend. It is time to stay indoor, and pray. For we shall continue to have other Jamaat acting like a bunch of misguided missiles, but let’s support our government and respective state governments to prevail.

Or we are all doomed. We will reach a point of no return.

Thanks to a virus we got……from China, with love.