Howdy everyone ! Its been long . Nearly one and a half months since I lasted bored you all with my rants :) . I hope some of you still remember me though .
I bet you all must have seen the Abu Asim Azmi Vs Raj Thackeray , aka Sainiks Vs Samkavadis BS being aired all over . Leave alone the debates , where Ivy League educated politicians talk as if they were schooled and force fed all the words a night before . All theory , all technical terms , full of "We shoulds and we should nots" kind of crap , cliched and over cliched . The issue itself is so damn idiotic . Who asked you to force one language on another ? And more importantly , who the hell asked you puff your chest and proclaim your solidarity with the "national language" . I wonder how familiar is that person , truly , with Hindi . And boy oh boy , do check his wikipedia bio . If the parties involved were so sorely seeking participation in contact sports , they could have easily done it in a better and more dignified manner . But NO . This is INDIA ! A gyrating democracy . Not vibrating , but gyrating , to different tunes . So this had to happen .
But this issue is just an off shot of the real issue , the Son of the Soil theory . I wonder why the name stuck , the only soil I know is the Indian one , the idea of Tamil , Gujerati , Manipuri or Kashmiri soil sounds unreal and nonsensical to me . Anyways, we all have heard about it , since it all started in 08 . What happened then bothered me a lot , and it still does . But what bothers me even more , is the undivided attention , the Hindi and English language media showered on MNS and Mr. Thackeray alone . Sure , he is wrong on many fronts . Undeniable . But how many of the news channels and journalists ever turned the limelight on the politicians and the pace of the development of the states from where all the "undesirables of Mumbai" come from ? Why aren't they portrayed as darkly as Raj Thackeray , who is nothing but one side of the coin ? Why ? Is it deliberate , a part of some sort of a super conspiracy theory , to bring him out in the open , and as no publicity is bad publicity , fuel his growth ? Or is it that English and Hindi media took it personally , and decided to just focus on the side of the story they don't like ? I want to know why . Honestly . For will I not accept this argument forever , that any Indian can settle anywhere he wants , no matter what . Some things matter . Like the fact , that two of the most populous states cannot be underdeveloped for long without having its repurcussions . The fact , that a country as huge as ours cannot do with a handful of good cities . And migration must have its optimum levels ,everything in and around us operates on that logic. And who do we blame ? The people of those states ? The people of the states that has the migrant population ? The respective leaders ? The Central Government ? Who , the fuck , is responsible , and answerable ? And more importantly , even if only theoretically speaking , how do you redesign the system , to ensure uniformity , and to restore balance and order ?
But I guess Raj Thackeray alone is enough to push the TRP up . Why bother , huh . Some of us will be happy watching the English/Hindi reporting on him . Some of us , will get a reason to pent up some anger , and might vote for him the next time . Many of us , would process it as reality tv/modern age entertainment , and live with it , till it directly crosses our path .
Please , share with me , if you have any answers .
16 comments:
No answers, I'm afraid, Kislay!
But I do feel that our founding fathers made the gravest mistake in creating Indian states on linguistic basis. Far better to have simply created square states of equal area.
We could blame any number of people for this linguistic mess we are in. And rightly, too.
What has RT achieved, one wonders? People are now sympathising with someone like Abu Azmi!
@Manju
Seems like a very tricky question . I often wonder what the answer could be .
Sigh !
" Far better to have simply created square states of equal area.
"
Ah,so true Manju..
" People are now sympathising with someone like Abu Azmi!"
Is he a bad guy? Just asking bcoz all i knew about him is what was in the newspaper,in regard t this incident..
Kislay,good post..It is sad that people like RT are getting publicity through bloggers like you and me..Otherwise,who is going to think and ponder over them..
p.s :Did you read that RT has asked SBI to recruit Marathi-manoos alone..
One day,rest of indians will start hating marathis,for no reason of theirs,but for the actions of so-called marathi-resuers...
Nimmy
http://nimis540.wordpress.com/
the media today has started over doing the items...be it the Raj Thakery episode or Sachin Tendulkar finishing 2 decades..
First there was less freedom of press now the press is going beserk..
the question still remains unanswered..what can we do??!!I seriously don't have the answer..
Nice post by the way :)
sigh! is there an answer to this?
it has just got worse through the years.... north south east west!!
pah! like we have already solved more pressing issues in our country...that we have taken these up!
all this marathi-manoos nonsense! its a joke now... and u said it so well..we will forget it till we directly have to encounter it! sheesh! indifference is growing by the minute! :|
hope u've been fine al-kisladin? :D hugs!
People like Raj Thackery, Balasaheb,Abu Azmi,Amar Singh all are dying to get some media space which they are able to get by creating such situations.
Also let us not forget,problem was created by Nehru when he decided to divide the states on linguistic basis.It takes years for such decisions to show the real results.
Sigh!! Its incredible when people like Abu Azmi manage to gain our sympanthies. But, here is a twist. I sympathise with him only because he was outnumbered while being beaten up. had there been equal number of samajwadi party and MNS mlas, I would have sat back aaraam se n enjoyed the show.
Everyone knows that Thackerays are insane people, and it amazes me that their voice still finds resonance across certain communities. MNS is allowed to "rape" the constitution, as many times and in as many ways as they please. The ruling govt dare not act against them.
Bala Thackeray has a problem if Sachin claims that he is an Indian and a marathi, instead of being a marathi and an Indian. Subtle diferences which only a thackeray can understand. I was watching debates on Tv last night, and none of the shiv sena mlas or mps, could explain why Bala saheb had to write all that bull shit.. They only said "Only shiv sena has the right to speak for the 'Marathi Manoos' and we stand by whatever Balls-to-you thackeray wrote. Sigh!! Whatever happened to humans being blessed with the power to reason!!??? HMPH!!
The question is.. Whose india is it anyway??? The answer is very simple. It is my india... it is our india. But if the answer is so simple, then why do such debated keep cropping up from time to time?? I really don't know.
And kislay, you are right. You know, u have channels like Times now, where Arnab Goswami shouts on the top of his voice.. "our channel doesn't subsribe to bull shit".."we dont want to give media coverage to this n that stupid thing".. n yet such issues are debated n debated.. over n over n over n over again!! And if you see, the politicians who participate in such debates are all lawyers!! jaitley... abhishek manu singhvi... that ravi prasad from bjp.. jayanti natrajan.. manish tiwari.. they are alll lawyers.. He he...
RT has been yelling since the 70's. that is now almost 40 years - people come to bombay, have their 3rd and 4th generation and still he keeps yelling. doesn't his throat ache...ah, i forgot he has a mike and print and gundagiri also ...and that is how he is known as a symbol of violence - that is the legacy he will leave behind..that is how is headstone will read
It is common knowledge here in Mumbai that Raj Thackeray was propped up by Congress as a means to break the votebank of Shiv Sena.
Free publicity, no action taken for all that goondagiri and more importantly RT is rumoured to have recd. Rs. 200 crs from Congress.
If you analyse the results carefully, RT got 13 seats and spoilt chances in another 30 seats. This meant that Cong-NCP would have been in the opposition.
The attack on Biharis was an orchestrated event with TV channels being given advance information of the date, time and place of these incidents.
Sons of soil is an old concept used every where in the world. Malaysia calls the Malay majority bhumiputras to distinguish them from migrant Chinese and Indians. Sri Lankans used this against Tamils, UK used this against migrants, Fiji Islands used this against Indians and so on.....
In Tamil Nadu this was used against Brahmins, in Kashmir against Pandits....the list is endless....
RT has got tremendous following - make no mistake. He will be a force in the coming years. His next target is the Mumbai Municipal Corpn....the money supply line. He has the charisma and capacity to be a serious contender for power....He is a smart cookie...all this drama is just for power.
@Everyone
The question I am trying to ask here , is why just Raj , why not Mulayam , Laloo or Mayawati ? The people who have been in power in UP and Bihar for the past few years .
@Mavin
Boy ! If you what you say is the actual case , then it is a different ball game altogether . I knew a part of it . But if the MNS received money , then I salute the Strategist who came up with this , and spit on him/her as well .
Kislay,
You should under stand that the fascist politics of Senas is much more dangerous to India's unity than the non-development problem of Bihar and UP. Thakaray brand of hate politics is not against Biharis alone,it is against India as a whole. To attain power only these ppl are agitating in the name of Maharashtra.It is an easy and cheap way to get votes. Let me end with a quote from one of my blog posts.
"The most important division in India is between the rich and the poor. Mumbai is the prime example with small number of people with large wealth and large number of people with almost nothing live side by side. This is an explosive situation. People will start asking questions and may even revolt. What to do?
The religion, region and to some extend caste come to the rescue of the rich. So the Ram mandir, Maratha pride and Islamism are invented to prevent unity of the poor. The poor Muslim labourer is lynched by a mob for 'preventing' the building of Ram Mandir. The poor train passengers are killed by Islamist bombs as a revenge. The Bihari coolie is be-headed by poor and unemployed Marathi youth for Maratha pride.
The rich laugh all the way to the bank and into the Assembly.
Who ever wins it is a win-win situation for them."
Such a pertinent post!
If the two largest states of India were better developed, the likes of RT would have no takers.. But the thing is, underdevelopment of these 2 states is what gets politicians into power! Which is why UP and Bihar despite being underdeveloped has such an importance. And the precise reason why the politicians want to keep it so.. Which is why the politicians who keep states undeveloped are never questioned! As for the media - the lesser said the better.. I guess TRPs will not rise if we talk about real issues.. It is easier to talk about controversial issues, whip up a temper and gain a few TRPs..I guess..
read the title and remembered that this one's been lying as a draft since ages Kislay...with the emphasis being on 'the son of the soil'...
now will read further...
I agree with Charakan's point to an extent Kislay..that the Thackeray brand of politics is much much more dangerous to India's unity than anything else...
but when seen from a different perspective even the non development of states like Bihar and Orissa is a major issue and a pertinent one ...so yes I completely agree with the questions you have realized Kislay and I want to ask them too..
Because this hatred breeds more hatred ..yes true...
but doesnt non development breed feelings of resentment? of beidng made to feel that one is inferior and hence not entitled to what otehr countrymen/women are entitled to?
That you see is where the issues mix...
and that is why I too want to ask those in the media business as to why it is only selective covergae given to masala worthy news and not to the real issues that could and are affecting this country of ours...
Why is it that a LAlu is feted at magement schools and big business leaders pose with him shamelessly? and not one person..not ONE dares to ask him as to the kind of place he has let BIhar become..
the same LAlu comes to 'battle' and 'defend' the Biharis when they are attacked by the shiv sainiks/RT goons..but will not answer the question as to why is it that the youth of Bihar is forced to migrate out of the state????
Lalu fsr all his funny mannerisms and oh so ructic cuteness at which so many go ga ga....will not get room even in hell I am sure...
the good news is THIS :)
and this makes me smile and hope that what we had prayed for and wished for with all our hearts (rmbr the mail a long time back when India's unity was in question in a comment on a blog?)
that there will BE a time when people will migrate to Bihar instead of vice versa?:)
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/at-11.03-per-cent-bihar-growth-rate-only-a-step-behind-gujarat/563018/
makes me smile ...this does:))
May the tribe of Nitish Kumar increase..I will take him over a lalu anyday:)
PS:- typos galore in the previous comment:)))
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