Deeply anguishing

I go cycling around RK Narayan’s residence quite often, it’s about a Km or so from where I stay.  The house is in a pitiable condition, half demolished as it was stopped by concerned people (it may be noted that the family wasn’t much bothered and had sold it to some developer), and since then the government has taken over with the promise of converting the house into a museum.  That was few years back. The house seems to have got stuck in time and is an anguishing sight. RK Narayan deserves much better than this. He was an immensely popular writer. His house should be converted into museum at the earliest. This has so much of possibility to be a tourist attraction. Like his Malgudi town, this could be a Malgudi house where all his endearing character can come alive. Already there are enough stunning drawings by RK Laxman in existence that could make the exhibits compelling.

RK Narayan had an abiding influence on me, of course apart from his highly popular TV serial Malgudi days. I started reading seriously only after I had crossed twenty five (previously mostly into comics or encyclopedias), and RK was one of the earliest as he was easy to read. Also, the Sahitya Akademi library (delhi) had a huge collection of RK’s books. In a month or two I finished most of his books, and promptly decided I should be a writer!! Quite akin to some of his impetuous characters that he so charmingly created. In a way it’s a tribute to RK Narayan (or an insult, as you may look at it). Over the years I seem to have lost the innocence, and understand writing is a much difficult process, also in the meanwhile RK’s writings were also being criticized by people who should know better. These puzzled me a lot. As I start to get the grip of things I do understand some serious lacunae in the world of Malgudi. But then it isn’t a reality and is only a fictional microcosm of Indian life. Surely it is the writer’s prerogative to write on what he is comfortable in. Malgudi stands the test of time, and so does RK Narayan as a fiction writer. I need to stress ‘fiction writer’ since some his essays and views I find elitist and amazingly out of place. Well you cannot blame him when your friend circle includes MN Srinivas (who apart from other things even put forth, with much seriousness, that people from higher strata should be paid to stay with people of lower section, as a practical step towards social amalgamation!! If I recall this interview came in Frontline, long time back). 

Mysuru (thankfully Mysore is out, apologies to RK) is a great place to live, quieter and laid back, it goes with my temperament. I sincerely hope they don’t ruin it like they have done to Bangalore (which is now development junkyard, that surely is a huge effort from what was once a garden city), though signs are ominous with homo sapiens reproducing at alarming rate and market pushing from development. You can cycle around the Mysuru city without facing much pollution or traffic issues, overwhelming section is sensitive to surrounding. Three to four kms from where I stay is agriculture land, where things are as it is for centuries with Kaveri river in the back drop and web of canals and water bodies. It is a paradise of wildlife, very few cities can claim of bird sanctuary.  Located right on the tip of Western Ghats Mysuru is enchantingly close to wildlife, so much so that you get tales of leopards and wild elephants, sometimes right in the centre of the town. It is straight out of RK Narayan’s plot!!

Mysuru also has history of valuing excellence, few names of people who have spent substantial part of their life in Mysuru will help to get the context. Former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishan taught in University of Mysore (his birth anniversary is observed as Teacher’s Day), M Visvesvaraya an engineer whose contribution is such that he is even referred to as ‘father of mysuru’ (his birth anniversary is observed as Engineer’s Day). Other names includes, the list is long and I am including only few, Kuvempu, Raja Ramanna, HY Sharada Prasad, RK Laxman, Narayanamurthy so on. Mysuru over the years has become quite an attraction for yoga practitioners. Pattabhi Jois and BKS Iyengar are the names that have connections to Mysuru. For a small town (it’s difficult to call Mysuru even a city) that is quite remarkable. 

There is a restaurant named Malgudi in Mysuru, with sketches from RK’s fictions on the wall, quite a charming effort but I find it too congested for my liking. So I skip it. I prefer breakfast in a laid back place with not many people around or much chattering, it can be quite distressing. They should give me my three idlis or oil less masala dosha with potatoes mashed into small chunks  and hot piping coffee, and forget me for next an hour or so, and I read an agreeable newspaper column that should make me think. Its how the day begins, nobody is rushing anywhere.    

Love Jihad: The elephant in the room

I have been reading with much amusement the write-ups and views of various commentators from the wide spectrum of India’s pretentious intellectuals. They differ according to their persuasions, benefits, and urgency herewith. In most cases they follow the template of mullah-pandering-pompous-sickularism or rabid patriarchal majoritarian rant. The fratricidal war to save us is on. Few centuries back these were fight between gotras, between horizontal and vertical, completely bypassing common people. It’s a rarified field of self aggrandizement, grandeur and nitpicking –also referred to as debate -vaad samvaad parampara -the kind Amartyas of the world expertise in, without any connection with any reality.  

When you divide people in the name of religion then you will have anachronisms of love jihad, to believe that these are fictitious is pushing the issue under the carpet for greater good of sickularism and lovely world constructed herein. Some intellectuals with hand on the heart ask how could love be divided like this? Love should triumph all the barriers, they are unison about it. A kind of mush that market loves to feed on. One writer masquerading as feminist calls it as triumph of women’s right and her right over herself. While another refers to choice of partner as individual freedom and so on. Nobody has problem with these nice words but the intent is questioned. Last few years as I gain understanding of these pretentious people I have become quite careful about their intent, it’s a deep malaise. After all one needn’t forget that these have pupated from squatter’s framework. They speculated grandly on nature of universe and the very next instant cannibalised common people. Nicer words with no intent or compassion, and so secularism becomes sickularism, a potent means for social climbing and liberal exhibitionism. They carry these with flourish these days and market pays them well. What they ignore in their heightened righteousness is my concern here.

Ofcourse many are right on money but the context is quite messed up. They quite persistently don’t see the elephant in the room. Nobody is against love nor is anyone denying rights of individual, indeed one is glad about female rights being asserted in an overwhelmingly patriarchal society. But we are not living in an isolated grandness. One need to understand that extreme and biased nature of civil laws are the basic cause of these discrepancies. The muslim civil law which seem to have given free hand to blatant patriarchy as religious freedom is the concern here. Primitive practice of polygamy has created lots of problems. One cannot be naïve not to see that increasing the numbers has been the motive of controllers of religions, this give them the clout. Clearly their counterpart in Hinduism (or Sikhism or Christianity) will react hence claims of love jihad don’t go without context. Also, it need be noted that relatively limited nature of freedom accorded to muslim females also go into ‘advantage’ for the patriarchs of the religion, the issue of face cover maybe religious expression for some but it has social ramifications. One shouldn’t be surprised, it restricts space for interaction and acts as a control. How is my expression affecting others cannot be ignored. We are not living in isolation, the happening of the world and increasingly communalization of societies is a known fact. As also the history of the region has some lesson for power brokers. People will be concerned and these genuine apprehensions will be capitalized by vested interests. 

In the patriarchal nature of religion marriages are seen as an instrument to acquire child producers, to increase the numbers. Democracy is not about freedom to explore or opportunity to cherish the world but is just another god granted opportunity to work on numbers. Thus democracy has not improved democratic values instead it has become an alibi for patriarchal norms as traditions and expressions. It is as crude as that. This is the reason why conversion of religion by only woman happens in the marriage. If marriage is about love then why is there conversion of religion? Clearly it means it is more than love. Religion is very much involved.  Also, as long as love leads to conversion through marriages the patriarchal forces on the other side of the spectrum (i.e. hindu right, in this case) will cry foul and create problems. This reaction is expected. Religions are controlled by power brokers who have simple arithmetic and simpler surer dangerous view of world -and even after world. Therefore it becomes incumbent on civilized society to recognize these problems and disincentivise patriarchy in whatever forms they appear. 

Uniform Civil Code (UCC) that is based on egalitarian worldview and seeks to create gender parity is the need of the hour. That is the basis of secularism and democratic rights. Masquerading feminist will ignore the fact that it is women’s right that is curtailed when only women converts in marriage, or that a system recognizes only polygamy as choice. They may try their best to classify this as choice, but cannot ignore the reality that there is crude insistence and dire expressions of patriarchy embedded in the religion. ‘Mixed’ marriages where women convert is not an example of love or egalitarian world of choices, on the contrary it is acknowledgement of primitive patriarchy wherein uncivilised norms are sought to be mainstreamed. This is true for Hindus as well as Muslims or any other religions, deviant norms cannot be sought to define secularism. Indeed, we also need to evolve from limited world of secularism to egalitarian world of humanism.      

Freedom means the right to choose what faith one wants to follow, or better still not to fall for these degradations and anachronistic nonsense that is constant threat to humanity. If marriage is based on conversion then it is violation of that right, or least the freedom is conditioned, also keep in mind the enormous pressure people face in the society, so sometimes the decisions are based on social coercions which ofcourse is an agency of patriarchy. It could also be individual coercion by male member/partner, clearly an extension of patriarchal control. Under these circumstances marriage (what should be an extremely personal issue) no longer remains personal. It becomes focus for arbitration of power. Patriarchal nature of society sees the game plan of the other side, religion becomes fertile source for divisions, and extension of prejudices and stereotyping. Love jihad gains credence.                              

Ebola virus in India !!

Yes that is what is claimed by today’s editorial column of a leading English newspaper The New Indian Express ! Or is it? Read the line…

Though cases have been detected in India, it is important to ensure an afflicted person does not get into the country and move around freely unknowingly. Ebola is a lethal virus with a long incubation period (emphasis mine)….

I was sipping the coffee while reading and almost threw up. What the heck? And so spent next precious moments trying to understand, and reread the lines few more times. Yes, according to the editorial excellence of this newspaper “cases have been detected in India”, then I realize it must be a typo (since I am aware of the issue, otherwise I would have taken it to be true)…or is it a mischief? How such typo error happen that too in the editorial column of a newspaper that has prestigious name ‘Goenka award’ –for excellence in journalism, associated to it? Further the mistake is on an issue which is quite sensitive as also the typo is such that it fuels alarm.

What kind of competence is this? If they cannot even write few lines of editorial properly they have no right to be in the job. Most of these exaggerated positions are paid ransom, while the beat journalist peanuts. Such mistakes are called being highly irresponsible and grossly negligent. It’s like the doctor leaving the scissor in the patient’s stomach. Will the Editors Guild look into these and take appropriate action against the concerned newspaper?                

Be the change...

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world” is an oft quoted line of Gandhi. This has deep reference to many of Gandhians without much meaning associated or any impact to their pretentious and disgraceful lives. Undoubtedly ‘be the change’ is a clarion call to the conscience of each individual, but for many these are trivial matter in their ambition/greed filled life. I was reading the website of Kailash Satyarthi –the Nobel Prize for Peace recipient

      

Born about 6 1/2 years after India won independence, Satyarthi, 60, was so deeply impressed with Mahatma Gandhi's teachings that, as a teenager, he invited a group of high-caste local bigwigs to a meal prepared by low-caste "untouchables"; the invited guests boycotted the event and then shunned his family. Deeply upset, the boy dropped his Brahmin family name in favor of Satyarthi, which means "seeker of truth”

Now that is what change means, and I don’t think any of these pretentious conscious keepers (Trustees, you may) can claim that. You surely cannot pout egalitarianism ensconced in oppressive system. They have very cleverly presented this as cultural diversity, and having grabbed all the powerful positions, mainstreamed these as normal. These are as crude as Nazi symbols. In the above paragraph I find ‘brahmin family’ reference abhorring. On what basis has some people usurped Brahmin title, I find these amazing.

It seems Nehru was a Pandit, therefore Pandit Nehru! If this was due to his knowledge (which he surely was) and wisdom then it is acceptable, but then I don’t find the former President, and towering intellectual, referred to as Pandit Radhakrishnan, not for that matter Pandit Ambedkar. Quite strange indeed. Clearly ‘Pandit’ Nehru is casteist, necessarily feudal reference that Gandhian didn’t have any problems with. Sickularism was clever ploy and Gandhian values became alibi for furthering their corrupting values and nepotistic ways. That is why Satyarthi makes such an important statement apart from his amazing works for giving dignity to children from oppressed sections. This true Gandhian was not acknowledged with even a Padma award is statement on Gandhian masquerading congressman (as also five years of NDA) and their third rate self promoting cultural trustees. What a shame. It only points to how these awards and institutions have been degraded. The mediocrity is astounding.   

If anyone with oppressive surnames are awarded and appreciated by international community anywhere in the world this blogger will very definitely raise his voice and protest as loudly as possible. They will be scrutinized very closely. They can carry on with their debauch ways with blessing of squatters in the neighborhood temples, and call it tradition and diversity. If intellectually inclined they can even pretend freedom of expressions and human rights. They can pat each other and behave nothing is amiss. Please carry on with the putrid pits you live in where oppressional  references becomes traditions but if start to show any high pretensions this blogger will pull them to the muck they belong to. You can take my word for that! (I again call upon BBC to remove such people from their rank, though I don’t have much faith in BBC after their obsession with monarchial inanities and daily doses of tender acknowledgements to entitlement world).  

Shouldn’t Teen Murthi Bhavan be converted into museum showcasing all the great souls who brought about meaningful changes in common people’s life? Why should I be ogling at where the ex Prime Minister slept and so on (though I find the collection of books interesting but could only decipher few of the titles. I think they purposely put it that way for common people: you can see but you will not reach it or know it. And yes you must try!! It’s a kind of awe inspiring world). This is sycophantically feudal; no wonder they didn’t show much enthusiasm for land reforms…