India sleeps!!

Sipping coffee on a nippy Delhi evening is one of the most amazing things, one can do in month of February. February brings a warm respite from 2 chilly months of winter. Sipping coffee in plush CP could be an altogether different experience in itself, but on that day it was something special. Smartly dressed young men and stunning maidens were wandering hand in hand along the boulevard. We as usual a group of four boys were sipping our hot brew outside Nirula’s (couldn’t afford it ), enjoying the Glen Medeiros’s ‘Nothing gonna change my love for you’ played for nth time (with n tending to infinity, couldn’t resist myself from using this limit). The couples were looking so dashing, lost in their own world caring about none. It would be a lie not to admit that I was not getting jealous of the Romeos and Juliets relishing Valentine’s. As usual we were watching the lovers and were webbing dreams of an angel, who would come and change our dull lives.

Alas, as always there is always someone to spoil the rosy pictures. Our engaging fantasies were broken with a hysteric cry from inside the café. A sudden mayhem could be seen with saffron clad Amrish Puris breaking table crockery, thrashing anyone coming in their way. Another fleet of motorcyclists bringing Prans, Prem Chopras and company yelling some indistinguishable slogans arrived to add on to the hysteria. Young couples lost somewhere in their utopian world were suddenly brought to harsh realities of secular and democratic India. A cavalcade of reporters was following the procession of saviors of Indian Culture. As a ray of hope in darkness police jeeps reached the studios (it really seemed like a studio with so many cameras around, only without a Hero), but it all turn out to be a mirage. Police rather than stopping the destruction were at best acting as a spectator. In fact they seem to enjoy the shooting with some of them even volunteering to enhance the existing villainous army. As I watch bemused at the whole spectacle, the plush Nirulas was looted and brought down to pieces with media covering the issue and police assisting the actors. They really were acting, all wearing Palika bazaar shades and instructing cameraman to focus on them before carrying the act of cowardice. Such was the harshness that they spared none from waiters to sweet fragile beauties. The Shloks mouthed by them would have certainly made Tulsidas and Kalidas proud. A whole bunch of esteemed audience (including me) watched the whole spectacle with diligence and sincerity. Marauders flew from scene leaving behind a shattered and plundered restaurant restoring Indian values moving towards another destination (probably Archie’s Gallery).

Indian growth story has impressed one and all, with young resurgent India taking world head on. Indian elephant is marching ahead at the pace of a tiger conquering unimaginable feats every day. As they say 1 Billion unstoppable people are marching with dreams in their heart and strength of achieving them in mind. But somehow, very strangely intolerant, narrow minded fanatics are breeding in every nook and corner of India. Over the last few years FREEDOM OF SPEECH has somehow got lost in this emerging India. An actor commenting a dam could have his movie (which involves livelihood of several others as well) banned, an actress commenting on pre marital sex could have an arrest warrant issue against her, a professor can be thrashed in front of his students in the name of immoral paintings by illiterates (who even don’t know difference between morality and immorality) and many others,. The point is not whether the commentators are right or wrong, but whether they have the right to express themselves in this democratic nation. I am not against the protests as well, but it’s the way of protesting which frightens. Protests are not against statements but against very existence of the dare (it shouldn’t have been dare in first place itself). India has always been argumentative in nature. Arguments are fundamental pillars of a democracy. An argumentative diverse population is a paramount requirement of strong nation. Threshold of tolerance have become abysmally low, with most futile remarks bringing whole nation down.
Extremism in forms of religion, region, race and castes has strangled us with no one working towards releasing us from its clutches. We have become a nation of cowards with no one paying heed to state of national affairs. From the eventful day of valentine’s till now I have never seen any strong reaction against the mobsters. Biggest disappointment has been us (as Pepsi puts it Youngistan). We may be achieving unconquered milestones every day, but we have forgotten way of living, of unrestrained thinking where every one is free to express himself, to do what he wants, of flying across the sky without any fear of hunted down! I wish we could be somewhere near to this utopian world. As Bob Marley beautifully says:
Get up Stand up
Stand for your rights
Get up Stand up
Don’t give up the fight
One more time!