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I first heard MJ when Dangerous was making the rounds. Most people remember "Black or White" when they think of Dangerous; it was MJ's biggest hit since 1982's "Billie Jean". I don't remember it making a great impression upon me. Sure, I liked the morphing towards the end of the song. But I didn't understand what drew people to MJ. Entertainment then revolved around Doordarshan and its inane soaps. But I hardly realized that my ignorance of MJ meant a life of ignorance of music.

A few years later, I caught "Billie Jean" on MTV and I remember my jaw dropping at MJ's moves. Shortly after though, I forgot all about MJ . Those were the days of Mohra, Muqala Muqabla, Urvasi Take it Easy etc. And I could appreciate those easily enough. Ironically, I was appreciating countless artists and moves inspired by MJ, but not recognizing the man himself.

It wasn't till I went to Dartmouth and my roommate from Pakistan mentioned his taste for Prabhu Deva when I realized the source of this wonderful form of entertainment. Today, countless artists like Prabhu Deva, knowingly or unknowingly, dance inspired by that great talent. I wonder how many children grow up today, appreciating the music and dance of his legacy without realizing the source.

Here is to the man who changed the face of music, entertained millions and will continue to inspire plenty more....

Sometimes the most interesting part of a newspaper is the Letters to the Editors section. BBC News has collected the views of some ordinary Indians (or extra-ordinary now that their views are public) on how they would lead the country here. I love these surveys because they offer insight into what people are thinking.

Of course, most of the insights are fairly predictable (provide electricity, education etc), but some stand out in originality. I was drawn to what Chandra Deep Yerra, a customer service agent, had to say:

"There are a lot of things I could do if I were the prime minister even for a single day. Instead of assigning ministries to my own party members, I would see who had performed well in that position in the previous term and hand it over to that person.

I would start a new division which would continuously monitor my ministers and other members and score them at the end of every week or month. This division would also educate the ministers on where they went wrong and where they could improve. "

It's no coincidence that Chandra is in customer service. And after all, isn't that what we need more from our government: service? Imagine the ramifications of outsourcing public-facing functions to BPOs in India. It's already being done by some Indian Embassies...how about doing that in the motherland?

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