The Election Fever (or the Great Indian Comedy)

 

I wanted to write more about the books that influenced my life, but all the fun happening around has deviated me.

The Elections are back to India. And I am enjoying all the fun in all the fronts, left, right, centre and in between. From the seasoned politicians to the newcomers (with hardly their moustaches grown) And the so called educating the Indian masses by certain media houses.

It is for sure I am not going to exercise my franchise. But the entire tamasha played out by the politicians is worth every second spent on reading and analysing the drama.

Let us take the UPA front, United Puppets Alliance, led by the puppeteer Sonia Gandhi. Sonia loves to be in the background and orchestra the entire proceedings and the entire Grand Old Party or the Grand Old Lady (Modi’s parlance) dances to her tunes or rather her finger movements. Then followed by her prodigal children who have not a clue of what they are saying or doing. Their entire agenda is to discredit all other parties and act as the sole saviours of the Indian democracy and the sovereign, socialist, SECULAR setup of the Indian Constitution. Why is this? To maintain their dynastic right to rule this country. They are the bane of this country, I would rather vote for a lawyer or a social worker or a retired govt. servant or a retired cop or a retired army man than vote for these jokers who think that it is their birth right to rule this country. The election manifesto is not new to the country, it has been tried and repeatedly trashed out in the southern states. They claim to have done everything possible to contain terrorism and their contention is that they handled the Mumbai Terror Attack in most appropriate manner and the NDA had failed miserably in Kandhar incident.

The Kandhar incident happened outside the country and that is in Afghanistan. Does any country has the guts to go into a different country and wage a battle in their soil in such short notice? The NDA did the right thing of releasing a few dreaded terrorists and get the plane and the travellers safe. What was the entire cost of this operation, one passenger who tried some bravado in the plane. Yes, there is a point of contention that the released terrorists have later on created havoc. But at that situation the govt. at the centre has done the appropriate thing.

Can you relate this to the Mumbai incident? The Mumbai terror attack was a very well coordinated strike and there was not at a single stage the perpetrators were in the mood to negotiate. So the commando operation was required with enormous cost of human lives. There is no valid reason for the UPA to take credit for thwarting the terrorists. In fact it was a big loss to humanity at large. The number of high flying individuals in business, media, the armed forces, the police dept., the innocent tourists died in this outrageous, audacious and senseless terror attack. This is not a point of argument and the present govt. must be ashamed that this incident should have never happened and what measures did the security apparatus in the nation to vision and anticipate this kind of situation. It is a blot on the govt. at that point.

Next is the appeasement of the so called minority community. The Congress has repeatedly shown their dual treatment over time. They seize every opportunity to keep minority communities MINOR and creating a stance that the entire community is given a raw deal in all walks of their lives. This is the biggest divisive strategy repeatedly used by the Congress and I don’t understand why people cannot see through their ploy.

Then comes the BJP, who are projecting themselves as a young party and with a lot of ideology. My take on them is give up the Hindutva agenda and the Ayodhya issue and try to project their capabilities in unifying the nation with clear and concrete steps to eradicate poverty and other issues plaguing the nation from the days of its birth.

Then the assorted jokers trying to start a third front. Very opportunistic approach made of a rag tag of parties based on caste, regionalism and language. Their agenda is to take the country to the prehistoric times with abolishing English education and the use of computers.

Then comes the Mayawathis, Jayalalitthas, the Mamata Bannerjees, and the others. Whose only qualification is exploitation of the minor minorities and shrewd power play. I don’t know if Mayawathi ever knows what the middle class of this country thinks of her and her brash, crude and uncouth ways. I don’t know if Mamata  Bannerjee ever knows how the people feel how she scuttled the ambitious small car project, and she proved herself that she is against development and not the CPM who were in the past responsible for these kind of stalling tactics.

Then comes the Left parties who think this country should be run by another country! (Read the last vestige of communism CHINA) Bunch of ideology driven veterans.

Then comes the assortment of Independent Candidates, whose only qualifications are they have done well in their chosen professions and do not have a clue of how this country has to be run.

Then comes the biggest driver of fears, opinions and pre poll, exit poll and post poll analysts, the English MEDIA. Their sustained effort to create confusions in the mind of  middle class, educated voters. They love to start the fire and stand back to enjoy the heat of the moment. Jokers and pseudo intellectuals who think the only prerequisite for a leader is English speaking, young and suave attitudes. If that is the case why the editor cannot himself enter the fray. It is basically motivated to increase the sales, rankings, advertisement revenues.

But my question is, is winning the election and ruling the country for the next five years paramount than the condition of the people of the nation? The basic agenda here is win the election hook or crook and enjoy the powers bestowed after this farce of democracy. My belief in democracy is sorely tested because of this very opportune, brash and crass run for power. The common man always comes a distant third or fifth in their agenda and we trust them to rule the country for the next five years.

I haven’t seen a major shift in easing of the issues faced by country year after year, election after election, alliance after alliance. Has the poverty situation eased or the slums in the cities cleared or developed to something more humane? Has the quality of education, health, transport or power shortages eased? Has the cost of living come down? Has the farmers given a better deal? Has the armed forces personal give their decent dues and the quality of their lives improved? Has the anti-terror measures and security issues improved? Has anything done to the improvement of exports of manufactured goods or farm produce or marine products? Nothing has improved to the standards of the west or half of their standards.

I think country as a whole should boycott this farce called election and it is the now the turn of the people to give politicians the boot.

I know these are all just a wishful thinking of me. But I would like to see what would happen if the entire nation stands against this election.

Slumdog Millionaire

It has taken me quite sometime to come up with my view on this widely famous movie, which has won enough Oscars that would collectively put to shame the previous achievers from India. This movies has all the elements to satisfy the curiosity and the perceived notion of India of beggars, snake-charmers, mendicants, sanyasies, slums, utter poverty and the list goes on. It is more of serving India with a dose of romance, glam, poverty porn and the canard ‘it happens only in India.’

I could only cringe at many situations faced by Jamal and romanticised by Boyle. First take up the scene when Jamal is in the toilet and the famous actor Amitabh Bachan comes over for a shoot in the slums and Jamal jumps into the piling shit below just to get an autograph from this great actor. Does that not show the blind fascination of Indians to the film stars, but this scene has gone beyond that. Utter commercialisation!

Next is the scene where the children are made beggars! Come on this is the 21st century and we can be sure that these scenes do not happen anymore. We were frightened in our childhood these sort of things happen. But with what regularity? This happens in movies and only in movies more often. It was so bloody horrible that I had to close my eyes when this scene was played. I would give an Oscar to Naan Kadavul if the case be.

Then the improbable journey across North India, where Jamal gets beaten up when he takes American Tourists to a place not frequented by tourist and in the process the car tyres are ripped off. The Jamal says, ‘ Welcome to Real India’ or to that effect. Yes, it happens in India and to all the Indians who go out of their way to show something very unique to India. This could happen to any tourist in any part of the world (New York Brooklyn or East End London or the docks of Marseilles). This scene is about a westerner being in the wrong place in the wrong time. Come on give me a break! This happens everywhere in the world.

Then the prostitution in Bombay. This is a known fact to the entire world and how the havelies in the by lanes of Bombay Central, Kamatipura or Grant Road operate and how the influx of new entrants come. It is not just orphans who are introduced to this field, but migrants who have lost their livelihood in their villages, the people driven out of their home due to political upheavals (Nepal) or just the pressure of carrying on with life and having no means otherwise. This vertical is not the real India by any means. Then if a case study is taken on prostitution the WEST would anytime beat India, with their ingenious ways.

Then the Q&A section of the movie, which dominates and the entire story revolves. This shows media in India controlled by pseudo intellectuals, who is apathetic to someone who is just lucky by experience! But I am sure everyone is given a fair chance in any field in India, despite the reservations, the divide between the rich and the poor, can excel. The entire Q&A is just a romanisation of the Kaun Bhanega Crorepathi and a very poor imitation of that famous reality show of the late nineties. We all know the luck and the surprise element in these shows. This entire charade was a utter mockery and shows how the so called high and mighty control the political and the police apparatus. If you take on the whole this does not happen in day-to-day life in India. There is still a virtue of righteousness in every aspect of Indian life.

Then the underworld of Bombay, it is overly romanticised in many Bollywood and other WOODS in India. This is just like in the west of mafias and drug dealers.

The love factor which drives Jamal to attain his destiny is not new to India.

The music is exceptional in this movie. But in that case AR Rahman should have been awarded multiple Oscars in the past few years.

I can just conclude that this movie is made to satisfy the West’s infatuation and perception of what India is, Poverty, Slums, Crime, Exploitation, Wheeling dealings and the list goes on and on. Do you think that if that this movie made by some Indian with the same cast and storyline would have crossed the shores of Bombay? We all damn well know that it would not have. This movie was just a Bollywood fantasy made by a British director.

I met an Austrian Photographer in Bombay in 1997 and she showcased the best of Indian culture, dance, portraits, festivals, landscapes… and I just happened to ask her why not the sordid poverty, slums and backwardness? She asked me, where in Earth don't you find these depressing scenes and why do you have to portray the worst when the best is beautiful and uplifting?