ACCEPTANCE SPEECHES AT THE OSCAR CEREMONY

Sound mixer Resul Pookuty accepted his award with a speech profound in its simplicity. "I come from a country and a civilisation that gave us the universal word. That word is preceded by silence, followed by more silence. That word is Om. I dedicate this award to my country."

Rahman said to a rapt audience, "The essence of the film is about optimism and the power of hope. All my life I had a choice of hate or love. I chose love, and I'm here".

THE ABOVE TWO PARAGRAPHS ARE AS REPORTED IN THE TIMES OF INDIA, BANGALORE EDITION ON 24 FEB 09.


I read the life histories of these two gentlemen today, because I was so enamoured by their acceptance speeches. These acceptance speeches are what India is all about. It has everything, the best, the very good, the good, and sometimes the ugly too - it is so diverse - you have to make the choice of what you want to make of your life. The life history of these two gentlemen are stories of hope, of aspiration, of opportunity to make a difference to themselves, their families and the country. These are two voices from India that started their life as non entities but pursued their dreams to make a mark at the international level. These stories prove that it is possible in India to achieve what you set out to achieve and that no challenge is insurmountable if you believe in yourself and the opportunities that are available to any one who wishes to make use of them. We have many problems but these stories prove to me that lack of opportunity is not one of them, if one makes the right choices, and is determined and single minded in the pursuit of his dream.

Comments

Piper .. said…
Absolutely agree. I was completely taken in by these two acceptance speeches as well. AR Rahman comes across as such a humble human being. It completely reflected in his speech.
OG said…
JPJ Sir,

you are right when you say:
We have many problems but these stories prove to me that lack of oppotunity is not one of them, if one makes the right choices, and is determined and single minded in the pursuit of his dream.
--------------
we can move forward.. but the right intent is very important
Indyeah said…
Absolutely and completely agree..and I too was blown away by the sheer simplicity and yet the profoundeness in their speeches..



''you have to make the choice of what you want to make of your life''

yes, one always has a choice..


PS:-there is some glitch with blogger ,followers dsprd 5-6 of them in one go..So had to follow you again..

everyone's follwoers hv dsprd..:D
Renu said…
I agree, I admire AR Rehman more for his humility and simplicity, so rare in today's world .
Balvinder Balli said…
JP, yes i watched them on TV when they spoke after receiving their awards. Such honest acceptance and in so few a word as against emotionally charged speeches most others.
J P Joshi said…
Piper: I couldn't watch the speeches live and was happy to watch them as short clips on the news, and of course read about them in the newspaper yesterday morning. They struck a chord somewhere.

Ajit: Yes, the right intent is really important.
J P Joshi said…
Indyeah: Yes, I so completely agree with you. Thank you for your comment.

Renu: I agree. I have loved the man and his music both, right from Roza days - he is just too good as a musician, and as a human being too. He is different - God bless him.

Balvinder: Lucky you. I missed it, but saw bits and pieces in the news.
I felt the speeches were out of context. Take Resul, if his speech was meant for Indians watching on TV then it was okay maybe. But if it was meant for the audience in the hall, then I think he missed the mark. For example, I dont understand why aum was invoked. Why does he have to talk about his civilization to that audience.
J P Joshi said…
LVS: Thank you for your comment. It made me analyse the whole thing again, and rethink about what you said. You do have a point, but I personally feel that these people were physically present in the US but were addressing the audience back home.....Oscars these days are more of an international event rather than just a Hollywood event. Aum is an Indian word...encompassing the entire existence (shrishti), as I understand, and India is the country that has given this word to the world..this just seemed to be a statement of fact about India. These speeches are more about emotions and I do feel that these two gentlemen did well.
Anonymous said…
L.Venkata - for a sound technician, it is but an apt acceptance speech -

OM - the beginning of all sounds
the energy from the source of life.
actually life itself. ( doesn't the cry of a baby at birth indicate that all is well ?)

I am sure there are people in the physical audience who understood what he said. And there was a global audience.

anrosh.
Indyeah said…
http://reportmysignal.blogspot.com/

Sir an interesting link one you might like or maybe you already know about it..:)
J P Joshi said…
The twenty secondline: Thank you for giving us another perspective....you have a point about the sound technician bit and the wail of a new born. Thank you and welcome.
J P Joshi said…
Indyeah: Thank you. I do receive regular email from the people who manage the site. Thanks for looking out for the faujis.