Patriots are a queer lot. You don’t know what all things can make them pick up the gun. Only one thing is certain apparently: the gun for anything. When the neighbouring country behaves like a hoard of bandicoots digging into our national borders, we will naturally take up the gun. But nowadays we choose to redraw certain lines on the map and then proclaim that not an inch of land has been lost. On the other hand, when a jewellery company brings out an ad promoting harmony between the majority and the minority populations, our patriots take up the gun. And shoot down the ad.
Those
who promote communal harmony are traitors in India today. The sacred duty of
the genuine Indian patriot is to hate certain communities, rape their women,
plunder their land, deny them education and other fundamental rights and basic
requirements.
Tanishq
withdrew the ad that sought to promote communal harmony. The patriot’s gun won.
Aapka Bharat Mahan.
In
the novel Black Hole which I’m writing there is a scene. It is from the trial of the murder of Graham Stuart
Staines and his little sons. In connection with it, a character says:
“Culture is a big comedy. A comedy with which the upper classes entertain themselves at the cost of the others.”
The
comedy of culture has been playing itself out from time immemorial. From the
time of the first gods. From the time of the first priest. From the time of the
first man who called himself the king. Then the priest and the king colluded to
swindle the vast majority. The third estate was born. The fourth caste was
born. The casteless untouchables were born. Centuries later, the new king and his
religion continue to do the same thing: swindle the third estate and the fourth
caste and the casteless. A gigantic comedy called patriotism. Or nationalism.
Varavara
Rao or Vernon Gonsalves or Stan Swamy are all traitors of the nation in front
of such patriots. What is their crime? Let the prosecutor ask. And the patriot
will answer, “They brought food and medicine and education to the tribal people
whose land we were going to grab for the corporates.” And the court will choose
to be patriotic. The court is the Supreme Comedy.
Ashwatthama
continues to laugh. His laughter started millennia ago in a midnight in the
Pandava camp after the Kurukshetra war. The war never ended. The comedy of
human existence doesn’t end. Ashwatthama can go on laughing.
Our
patriots are descendants of Ashwatthama, it looks like. They make me laugh and
cry at once.
A
related post from July: Ashwatthama
is still alive
Excellently explained... I tried engaging with so many on Day 1 to reason with them and get them to explain what was offensive in the ad. All I got were insults and calls of being a traitor to country and religion...
ReplyDeleteI too get insulted frequently for questioning certain dominant motifs and moods. What surprises me incredibly is how a large majority of people, including highly educated ones, be misled by hatred...
DeleteWatched the Tanishq Adv, That's nice.
ReplyDeleteNice to read your post.
Thank you.
DeletePowerful satire! Sadly that is the maximum one can do these days. Protests are also frowned upon and penalized....
ReplyDeleteWhy have people lost the simple sense of understanding and tolerance? I wonder. Why do we have to hate one another so much? It's a sad nation indeed.
DeleteWatched the ad and read your post, loved both. I often shy away from talking about such topics because internet apparently is not a place to have a discussion without being trolled or shamed. I don't have patience to argue on the internet so I prefer to keep my thoughts to myself.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's very tedious to have to argue with people on these affairs. You're wise to keep quiet on these issues. I find the rebel within me irresistible. Age has neither mellowed me nor withered.
DeleteI loved the ad and indeed it is giving a beautiful msg to world. It is really sad that some people are creating controversy on such beautiful msg. Loved your thoughts on it. And agree with it.
ReplyDeletePolitics has reached its possible lowest levels in India. There is a lot of hatred among people in the name of gods. None of the promised vikas or anything has happened for a consolation. In the latest global hunger index we rank a pathetic 94th among 107 countries.
Deletehttps://thewire.in/rights/india-ranks-94-among-107-countries-in-global-hunger-index-2020
People have lost it.. Sometimes I feel.. And hate is addictive perhaps.. Inciting people is easier than it was ever before.. Shaming and hurting has becomes tools for social media engagement these days..
ReplyDeleteIt's just so sad. And it would take so much of courage to even try to bring some sense and tolerance into the lot..
Thw whole atmosphere is terribly vitiated. It's easy to do that. Now cleaning up will take a whole generation or two.
DeleteVery well-written. I hope it reaches the audience that needs to read it, though I worry it may not.
ReplyDeleteNoor Anand Chawla
Not likely to reach them.
Deleteyou have put my thoughts into your post! how I wish I could write, clearly and coherently like you. Usually issues like this have me shaking with anger and unable to write a single word. I feel ashamed of where my country is going now!
ReplyDeleteThat's an immense compliment and thanks for that.
DeleteI too feel terribly bad about what's happening in India these days. We're regressing as a nation.
I watched the ad and I really liked it
ReplyDeleteYour post is eye opener for many people.
Glad to hear this.
DeleteWell said Sir! It is sad that how a loving, strong, harmony serving message get twisted by some certain mindset of people, who got a new subject so easily just to debate endlessly.
ReplyDeleteArchana Srivastava
archusblog
Yeah, the controversy is a good distraction when there's no threat at the national borders.
DeleteThe ad was beautiful and your thoughts very true. However, the sad part is the people who need to read and understand this don't really "read" and use their own brains. If they did, we wouldn't be needing this discussion here.
ReplyDeleteWho determines the socio-political realities today? That's the problem. We have handed over power to the kind of people who are no better than thugs at heart. So we have a sort of Thug Raj now which is masqueraded as Ram Raj!
DeleteTom, that is such a beautiful ad. The arguments given by these so called patriots and nationalists everytime I get into an argument with them makes my blood boil. They come up with such unreasonable arguments for their actions. The worst form of this is the whatabouttery they come up with. The minute you point out anything they will start preaching about what happened in the times of babar and aurangzeb. They give lame and foolish reasons for their actions. Your article is really a great one.
ReplyDeleteI can understand your indignation, Jai. I have seen you argue for sanity in many places and I admire your wisdom and sagacity. Unfortunately there are too few people like you around. There are many who think like us but fear to speak out.
DeleteIndeed,people having been making hype about anything now a days. The idea behind the ad was good and just hope everyone understands it.
ReplyDeleteMaybe awareness will descend on more and more people slowly... Let's hope. What's life without hope anyway?
DeleteYou bet he is still alive and the war never ended..Such a shame isn`t it? I saw the ad multiple times to understand what is "offensive"..
ReplyDeleteIt's just a fabricated offensiveness like a lot of other things in the country. Inter-faith marriages were always happening. I know so many people personally who have married from other religions, languages and even cultures. It's silly that in 21st century we even have to discuss this.
DeleteIt's sad to see that such a brilliant advert faced such backlash. It's the idea, belief behind the that people should understand, it's all about humanity after all. Loved your piece sirji :)
ReplyDeleteThis episode shows how hate has become widespread in the country.
DeleteWe have reached that stage that logical reasoning has been considered foolishness. I am just waiting to see how far can we be pulled back. And all this because we have given the reigns to the hatemongers.
ReplyDeleteYou hit the nail on the head. Hatemongering has the government's blessings.
DeleteIt has become a regular norm to boycott things in the name of culture/religion/cast and if course patriotism. No matter how educated people are or open Minded they claim to themselves, their narrow thinking reflect. Tanisq case is only one such example
ReplyDeletePatriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel, said Samuel Johnson. India proves him right yet again.
DeleteI think there is nothing wrong with this add. Its most beautifully created and have nicely portrayed the way two cultures have united and are treating daughter inlaw as a daughter. I really didnt find any reason why people are debating on it so much. You have very nicely written this post.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is not with the ad but with the people.
DeleteI've seen this ad a few dozen time just to understand what exactly is offensive about an inter-religious marriage where a mother-in-law makes a daughter-in-law feel welcome... It's by far the most illogical hue-and-cry I've ever seen. Of course all the other "cultural" travesties happening in the country today are another level... but this one. This one, i just don't get.
ReplyDeleteNo right-thinking person will find anything offensive in that ad. On the contrary, it warms our cold hearts. Yet India finds it so offensive that the ad had to be withdrawn! A malady has gripped the country.
Deleteits a lovely ad. the whole buhaha over it has gone over my head! why everything has to be politicized and used to divide people?
ReplyDeletealso not been able to understand what is wrong with this ad !
You said it when you mentioned politics. It's politics and nothing else. For centuries, people have miscegenated and normal children were born to them.
DeleteIt was one of the most beautiful ads and I wonder why we can't see the actual message behind it. I loved reading your take on this and totally second your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteThank you for saying this.
DeleteGod knows when will things be measured beyond the parameters of religion and politics. It was one of the most beautiful advisements I have ever come across.
ReplyDeleteWhen we have to say this, it means we are on a regressive path. Hope our leaders who preach vikas and other great ideals and principles understhand this.
DeleteSuch a beautifully elucidated post. Loved your crisp and succinct writing. Your thoughts resonate with me and a handful of others who can't be mislead by hatred.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you here.
DeleteWe are becoming intolerant in the name of nationalism that is nothing but jingoism. There would always be people who garble our thought processes; the challenge is to think for ourselves. I do remember the Graham Staines incident. At that time I could not grasp how we could justify his killing.
ReplyDeleteFor petty political benefits some people pervert the entire atmosphere of the nation.
DeleteThanks for writing this post... You explained the 'comedy' in a wonderful way... Presently, everything is politics... Earlier we were always on the look out for protecting communal harmony... Nowadays, the so called patriots are looking for every opportunity to burn thw country down... I had interactions with few such patriots on Twitter... They tried to showcase me as naive, living in la la land and what not... Stopped engaging with them after that!
ReplyDeleteI can understand your predicament. I unfriended some and vice-versa on social media merely because of this sort of issues. Former friends are now foes!
DeleteAn Ad.that shook the nation, Companies are trying different ways to promote their product, they want to touch the strongest emotions. Wonder where this is leading to!
ReplyDeleteI hope you're not transferring the blame on to the makers of this ad.
DeleteThis post spoke to me on so many levels. And yes the kind of charade happening all around us these days ; makes me believe that culture is becoming quite a comedy.
ReplyDeleteTragicomedy in fact.
DeleteI don't understand what has gone wrong with us especially since the past 7-8 years. We grew up watching "Mile sur mera tumhara" which only gave us goosebumps whenever it played on television. We have seen many movies that pivoted on an inter-faith marriage/love story & nobody really cared about having it banned. While social media is a much-needed tool that people should use to express essential concerns about burning issues, this level of ostracization & hate & offense is something to worry about.
ReplyDeleteYour post captures all of my feelings & I wonder when this will stop. I would only maintain that fanatics are present in every religion. And they do not represent the religion. They should NOT be thought of doing that, at least. And that shouldn't be allowed for us to brew hate for the other religions.
Something has gone seriously wrong with us and we also know it. But most of us want it this way. That's the tragedy.
DeleteLoved your satire post. People are definitly going mad and spreading religious hatred.
ReplyDeleteHatred intoxicates.
DeleteYour satire is bang on. It always is. There was so much more to your post than just the Tanishq ad. As you said, even I no longer know whether to laugh at the ludicrousity of this nation or to cry.
ReplyDeleteGetting tougher to live in this country.
DeleteI've not watched the ad but the conversation around the media draw my attention. That's thought provoking read. I must say the tolerance level is becoming low day by day. And people don't want to see the positive impact of any good thing
ReplyDeleteIt's very easy to fish in troubled waters. What our current leaders do is just that. They have vitiated the entire atmosphere of the country and are reaping political harvests. Pathetic. What a fall from our great freedom fighters to today's 'patriots'!
Delete