Westernization of India

An old man with long grey hair once dreamt of a developed nation; a nation that would truly be called a superpower by 2020. We may have to wait 7 more years to know whether we have come close to achieving even half of the tall and ambitious dream, but we all can be certain that we are living the American dream, the epitome of westernization (at least in our perception).

If we take a tour in our streets, be it in the cities or villages, we could see the youth, driven by the glittering stars of the silver screen, are transforming themselves into dandies and divas, idolizing and yet most of the times imitating the stars. Albeit purchasing power being a hindrance, the cheaper clones in the grey market do satiate their quench. But their thirst isn’t just for the clothes, gadgets or the effusing language of the western civilization which the stars emulate; for our streets are now thronged by the world market, while our schools shell out millions of ‘qualified’ professionals for the world to ride over. In reality their unfeigned thirst is the liberty to live life the way one wants to be. That exactly is the westernization today’s youth are striving for.

Cynical people bicker that in the process of individualization (a by-product of westernization), people are losing their family values & sacred culture. Though it is true that our virtues have taken a beating due to the liberalization that ensued westernization, we should also remember that this sacred culture hasn’t been with us from the birth of time. What these detractors fail to realize is that with every transformation there lies a bleak phase. This best way to come out of the perplexed state is the way forward and not retraction.

But the real question about westernization is yet to be enquired by the jeering crowd. Westernization as one assumes, isn’t just about the luxury or freedom; nor does it ask for one to lose his firm base on the holy culture as the mocking crowd thinks. Westernization is the perseverance to strive hard for what one wants. Take our company as an example. When the plant stops due to quality problem, we turn some levers and grind some panels and somehow resume production. Of course we will find a better solution during the weekend, but what is the state of the products that were produced till then? Would that happen in any American or German company?

Deep down, we all are living examples of the motto ‘chaltha hai bhai’. Whenever there is an issue we say ‘let’s adjust’ or ‘let’s forgive’. If someone comes forwards to solve an issue we tell him ‘let’s not strain much’. In reality we only want to live a pampered and cushioned life, but not want to work hard to attain it. In short our sense of priorities is haywire. Until we start aligning our thoughts in the way our friends in the west do, we would never become a developed nation.

Subversion of the mind

The day I was born, I was kept in a conditioned room because that was the standing instruction. As I grew up I was sent to a place where my mind was force-channeled to a prescribed path set by some unknown person who was being called the Author. I personally don’t know Mr. Author, but he would be my saviour throughout. He saved me from flunking in exams, from getting scolding from teachers, from embarrassments in front of fellow mates and pretty girls in my class, from facing the wrath of my parents, etc. But it was always temporal; I still felt fear creeping behind me, engulfing me in darkness. Yet a sound kept pronouncing to follow the Author religiously if I wish to see daylight. And so it continued; I abided by every rule deemed important by the Author, for he said that was the path to eternal sunshine. The day did come when my path blazed in silvery bright. The Author came in a unicorn and took me to another place along the same path. They tested me on various occasions: 8 to be precise, but I had the ever trusted Author by my side. This stretch was fairly simple. The drills were the same; the instructions from the Author - the same; fears none. The Author has imparted enough confidence in me to face the bright light for eternity. All I had to do was to follow the set rules – everything will eventually fall in place.  

Everything did eventually fall in place. Upon hearing the voice of my confidence, eternal sunshine sent for me. It was my time: time to reap the benefit of years of diligent work under the Author. But as I turned back to look for him, he vanished in the rays by then. Copping the loss, I braced myself. As the sunshine dictated terms to follow I started searching for rules to follow; there were none. It said that I hold the power to make or break a rule; that I should bend its rays to draw power. I didn’t learn to bend a ray, then comes using it to draw power. I asked for a manual, but I was given a goal list. When I asked how, it asked me to look inside to get the answer outside of the box. I searched outside and questioned inside; I searched for the Author and wandered inside. Shattered and battered I realized I was taken for a ride by the Author. 

The Indian dream - in 2D

As I reached an age where I got exposed to some well written articles, I started coming across the term ‘the Indian dream’. It was intriguing, because I never really thought it was possible for a billion people to have the same dream. But we once had: a dream to be a free country; or so they told us to believe. 64 years hence, do we still have a common dream? Is there a common thread that binds every one of us into one entity – Indian?

When I sat for my job interview, I was asked a simple question: ‘what are your short term and long term goals?’ In short they wanted to know what my dream is. The only dream I get often is where I save a damsel in distress. Another dream that teases me to reach the Meta state is when I stop a running train with just my index finger. Yes I dream of being a superhero a lot of times. We all want to be a superhero and what he stands for. We think ourselves as the purest part of the society surrounded by hooligans, questioning & comforting ourselves that we don’t deserve this situation. This dream, this vision is what we see in our movies as well: good fighting to win over the evil. Even when we make a movie about goondas & rowdies we try to justify their act of hooliganism, so that there is a good vs. evil fight at the end. We attach a purpose, a motive that makes a person right; no matter how bad an act he does, so that we can see us in him. When he eventually conquers his nemesis it’s our victory: a victory that we perceive will make everything right. On the contrary, when a movie doesn’t give a clear demarcation, it is termed as ‘loosely written’, ‘everything is left hanging’. This ability to see everything as B&W is the Indian dream I think: to plot everything in the 2D plane like the ‘good, bad’, ‘right wrong’ ‘for, against’, etc.

Take any issue of national importance; it has always been dealt with by the people in a ‘either this or that’ manner. You can either support someone or be against him. You can’t say something outside of the answer choices. I would call this impatience and a lack of perseverance. It took us 12 years of primary education to easily study a UG programme. Would we have been able to do it as a kid? When we all know there needs to be a lot of foundation & ground work required, why are we adamant in demanding results immediately? Some justify this impatience to the lack of development even after 64yrs of foundation. My question is; did we actually make a proper foundation? One government comes to make a scheme; the next government scraps it and makes a new one, which eventually gets scraped. Do we really have a defined path set for the future of our country? Instead of asking for a Shankar films like massive makeover in a matter of minutes, has anyone stopped and thought about a longer/permanent solution that will be able to adapt to the scenario of tomorrow? No, we are busy classifying the world as black and ourselves as white. But are we? A so called ‘farmer’ hates paying tax & so does everyone involved in the agricultural industry. They don’t even pay electricity bill. They say we are doing a service; why should we give our money to the government. If that is true, then why should the government relieve them of all their loans when there is drought? Go down south, to the interiors of Tamil nadu; Deer hunting is still practiced by the people there. Come to the cities; the working class goes all out to cut short a long procedure in any system. Even for rules related to safety issues, people pay bribe to avoid case being filed. From using helmets to emission control norms we don’t obey any rules. Little are we conscientious that a punishment is to make someone follow a rule. If, we don’t fear a punishment ourselves, how will a new legislation against corruption be enough to stop the corrupt? But we don’t care. We have made a great rule so we will remain complacent that everything will be fine here on. The great Indian dream fills our mind again. What does it take to make us push the envelope? What does it take to make us search for better avenues to curb such incidents? Didn’t we learn that prevention is better than cure? If we feel we are better educated than all the nethas put together, why are we following the same path as them to control injustice? Does a mother kill a child when it makes a mistake? By arresting someone for being corrupt is going to give you all the money that was swindled? Do you think 1.7 lakh crore money will come back to the government? Again we are making a precedent that we are interested in getting rid of the bad from our sight and nothing more than that.

I am not saying Lokpal is a bad law; I am not qualified enough to judge it. But my common sense tells me it is only going to satisfy the hunter in us – the Indian dream to win over the evil. We all know what happened to Sita after Rama killed Ravana. Lokpal may as well be the switch that cuts off the power to the corrupt; but little do we realise that the wire connecting the switch for empowering the citizen is obsolete. I want the wires to be laid first and then work on the switches, but the team Anna and the majority of people in metros want to take the opposite path. Either way, let there be light!

As you tweet shall we drum

In the age of social networking, Media houses have turned to Twitter and other such sites to fill their channel for breaking news slot.

‘I am not signing the famous star’s new movie – tweets a famous actress’, says one article; another headline screams that ‘an actress is pregnant – actor friend wishes her through twitter’; meanwhile an actress’ statement about taking to yoga in her twitter page  becomes hot news for discussion in the media.

Not always can media quote these stars for their daily digest & not always are the tweets self-explanatory. When little information can be milked from a particular tweet the writers puts on his creative cap, only to use sentences from the actor’s previous tweets to frame a plausible article. If the tweet-lad didn’t provide substantial backup for the information, the media turns the plate by publishing an article like ‘twitter is buzzing with news about an actress’ secretive marriage – is it mere speculation?’ Instances like these more or less sums up to the media being publicists for these actors – unpaid. Is this what we meant when we wished for unpaid news? More than being free publicity campaign the articles has come down to the level of being nothing more than a round up of famous tweets.

Agreed gossips & interesting information capture the imagination of the audience, drawing their attention, which an editorial seldom does. We do understand that media need to be in the business to provide good news & this kind of news gives them a lot of TRP. But in an attempt to reach out to a larger audience, they have made us realize that finding/ making news is child’s play. Follow the tweeter profile of the right people in any industry and you will be the first to know even before the media breaks the news. These acts of laziness to produce an original article, wipes out the charm that a news corporation is affiliated with. Not only that, they invariable project an image that they don’t have any ownership or responsibility towards what they publish. If the tweet-lad had made a mistake in his tweet he would eventually tweet about it, which becomes a news in itself. Inadvertently, speculation has become the news article of today moving away from its analytical aspect. How many times has any media house in a neutral mind-set tried to educate its viewers when the people have been misled?

Today, News Corporation of India is marred by greater & deeper issues apart from tweet mania. In this time of crisis, the fourth corner stone of this democracy needs more than a breather to save itself. But for now it can do better without drumming to the tunes of twitter.

Land of corruption

It has been a staggering month already, with multitudinous events, sprawling the vast geography of our country. Down south, the people have went down searching only to reach the top, not just the top of the headlines, but the top of the world’s riches list by digging the God’s own land; literally & figuratively. By people, I mean the elite few who will be benefited of this exercise, which includes everyone except the common man. But then, I hear the unearthing is going to be videotaped & the items excavated will be kept in museum, unlike expected of our elite few to export it in a raw deal; am I being pungent here? I believe, if that is eventually executed with honesty, it would be the best way to deal with the treasure. It heartens to hear people say, ‘let’s share the money’, ‘let us use it for the nation’, let’s sell it’. Firstly, it is not our money, it was basically the then kingdom's fund donated/buried in the temple, rightfully belonging to the bearer. The least we can ask for is to pay the required tax for acquiring wealth through gifts. Coming to the point that the money should be used for the public (provided the owner, in this case the trust, accepts to it), I seriously hope we Indians get a crash course on wealth at the earliest. These are not liquid funds lying in the coffers. Yes, idle money is of no use but as an artifact. Yet, can’t you think of any other option? What about loan on asset? Why can’t you take loan on a portion of the asset to cultivate a profitable business whose return can be used to pay for the loan? If that still sounds risky, proven the poor business track record of our government, why not let RBI have it in exchange for cash. At least it will lie within India. Remember these assets don’t just have monetary value; they speak a lot about our still unknown history; isn’t that our duty to protect our wealth rather than splurging it.  Hope the most literate state doesn’t become educated fools.

Going a little above, to a state which is known for spicing up everything from food to films, the land scams that had shaken the political throne have been shown the door for the war of ownership of land. Telengana sure is boiling because of underdevelopment. But what has the 100 MLAs done for that, apart from burning the state now and then, coupled with few fast unto death threats. Stripping off all the complexities, the issue is mainly about poor state of affairs in some parts of AP. Let’s say we give power to the people who are asking for a separate state; the power to rule AP, wont that shut their mouth? If that power wouldn’t pave way for a better development in those regions, they are not fit to rule a state even though it will be a minuscule one.

While the state of affairs & that of a state in itself is hanging, a lone figure, draped in white to invite violence, is prowling the muddy soil brazing the heat wave, thanks to the lemonades & three course meals offered by poor farmers who are fighting for their next meal. Rahul Gandhi might think he has proven his caliber as a politician by showing that he too can play the game. But what has he gained other than the name ‘politician’? Does it solve the real problem? A state which wants to industrialize had made some hasty decision, agreed. But by standing up for the farmers & nothing else, the future PM has been propagating that industrial revolution is not called for. Why not follow our northern neighbours’ policy by compensating as well as relocating people to a developed environment. By doing so, we can have planned villages which would eventually grow into planned cities. 


When all these issues would be done to death for the week, the coming week will start off swell thanks to the coal scam. This is what we call in tamil as ‘mughathila kariya posarathu’ (which will lose its meaning if I translate it).  

Tolerant India

//This blogpost is my entry for a contest in blogadda by the name Mera Bharath Mahan in partnership with PringOO //

I have always refrained from national building topics. It doesn’t imply that I am anti-national, but I have my reservations because I never experienced a sea-change or at least a spark when these so called patriotism inducing movies play out in theatres. Sure we might have got a small inclination to be a better person till the next day after witnessing an awe-inspiring speech/book/movie. But have we carried it forward in the longer run? (Lok Paritran? Where are you?) The next week we wholeheartedly succumb to the pressure around us. There is a nation-wide disease called tolerance. We tolerate our politicians, our neighbors, our boss, our colleague, our peers and even our worst enemies. When we want to do something for ourselves we go all the way to pacify these people because we want to achieve our goal. Our attitude to succeed is so powerful that, we just don’t bother to adhere to what we ourselves feel is right and just go by those people’s words. But when hell breaks loose, we blame it on the government/others that they are corrupt, they are the black-moles of this society, and what not. Mark my word if either you or I were to be in their place we might do even more damage to the society than what they are doing. We join forces to voice our disapproval/concern over adulterating issues, like the recent CWG fiasco. We keep shouting that, ‘look into China and see how well they had organized Olympics’. But do we really want to be treated like how the Chinese government treated their downtrodden? Do we know about the fact that the corruption charges were more severe there than what is alleged to be, here?  I am not asking you to tolerate what atrocities happen in the name of organization. What I am concerned is at the base – grass root level.

How many times have you thrown trash just because you are angry at someone?

How many times have you stopped moving ahead because you see hindrance from external/internal forces?

How many times have you decided against doing a social cause when you felt people around you will feel its waste of time?

How many times have you asked about the caste/religion of your acquaintance you have befriended recently?

Didn’t get what I am pointing at? Let me be more direct:

How many times have you stood up for what you feel is right without thinking what others might think about you?

How many times have you patiently briefed the authorities who are laying road for your street about the water stagnant areas of the road?

How many times have you called the city corporation to inform about the uncollected garbage that has been piling up by your street side?

I can go on and on about this. But what will that do? I will just end up ranting about my society and people around me (including me). We as a group are so tolerant to change and novel approach, why not use our tolerance level for better use?

Start by tolerating the banters of your family and not just your girl friend. Tolerate the urge to litter. Tolerate the constant disapproval chant that you hear when you are heading towards your goal and just move ahead from that place. Sometimes ignorance can be bliss. Tolerate the remarks that some immature people give for the good deeds you think you are doing. Tolerate the urge to ask about caste/religious details of your friend and castigate him/her. Tolerate the urge to succumb to others words and stand up for your wish. Tolerate the disdain look some government SERVANTS give and just convey your needs to them. Tolerate his slander and make sure the point it set across. Tolerate the anger that comes from not being responded to and continue doing your duty.

So what will happen if we try this? We will just end up being laughed at for our putting up act. Mind you this is not putting up and doing nothing – it is putting up to do something: the stubborn character to undergo anything, so that at the end the aim is achieved. You maybe a businessman, a director, a lecturer, an engineer, you all put with so many things in the day to day course of your life. But lets start putting up: viz tolerating the chant of evil so that what we think is better for us will be achieved. If every individual has this patience to endure pain we will have a good future and in the longer run a nation we can truly be proud of.