Ah! The awesome, exalting sound of a pipe organ as it fills a hall! What a magnificent, glorious sound! And what a majestic looking instrument; its flute like pipes rising high into the roof and seemingly disappearing into the heavens! Years ago as a youngster I joined a choir. The…
Robert Clements is a journalist and newspaper columnist. With an estimated 6 million readership, his column, Bob’s Banter is published in over 30 newspapers and magazines in nearly every state in India, as well as in the top newspapers of Bangladesh, London and Dubai and is also translated into Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.
The Deafening Sound of Stillness..!
We were a noisy group in the car driving to the famous Waitomo glow worm caves. The caves are located in the southern Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand, 12 km northwest of Te Kuiti. This cave is about 2 hours south of Auckland, 1 hour south…
A Reason for Annoyances and Delays..!
I pressed the horn, stomped on the accelerator, cursed the driver in the next car and nearly shouted at the traffic policeman. “What’s the matter dad?” my daughter asked. “I hate being late,” I grumbled. “D’you know of all the people whose lives were saved because they were late?” “After…
Unavailable Policeman..!
I love watching Hollywood movies, especially the police action scenes when a desperate hero or his wife picks up the phone and calls the police, “Officer there’s a homicide!” And before you can say Jack Robinson or whatever the American equivalent is, squad cars with sirens screaming and lights flashing…
Take Your Shirt Off..!
Something terribly disgusting in our country is the glamour our political leaders portray through their ostentatious cars, their homes, their rings on their fingers, so on and so forth. The money they lavish on themselves so blatantly could easily feed a hundred families for a year or even more. And…
Don’t Skip Your Meals..!
Very often I hear men and women saying very proudly how they skip meals. “I don’t have breakfast!” says a fast paced executive. “Me neither!” says his secretary. “Why do you do this?” I ask surprised. “No time Bob, no time,” they say, and it’s for them and many others…
Filled with Pothole Guilt..!
The road contractor got down from his Mercedes and wiped a few tears rolling down his cheeks, “We contractors are a misunderstood lot,” he said as he stood on the edge of one of the largest potholes in the city. “Misunderstood?” I yelled, “Do you know the number of people…
Adjusting to Others..!
Watch a baby growing up; you will see the little one cries when it wants food, screams when it wants to go to the bathroom, and shouts whenever it feels it needs it’s mothers attention. Every time the baby cries, all the family members rush and look after its wants!…
The Tongues, they are a Slippin’..!
Many tongues are slipping in the country! Let’s leave the Rajya Sabha tongue that slipped over our new president, and travel to Maharashtra where a poor governor let his tongue slip not just over a syllable or word but a huge thought. Governor Koshyari who seems to have had his…
Let’s ask Dad..!
Two years ago, when my elder one’s twin toddlers visited our home and got stuck in India because of the imposed lockdown, I spent the day humming nursery rhymes and other baby tunes which they listened to and which automatically became part of our melody experience. This time, I found…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.