Amongst those who can manage to put their foot in their own mouth are newborn human babies, some peculiar invertebrates and then there is Mrs Bachchan. Ofcourse Mrs. Bachchan was not born yesterday and I cannot vouch for her vertebral column, but old age can some times bring about some interesting maladies. Mrs Bachchan showed us this week that ‘foot-in-mouth’ is one of them.
One of the golden rules of human behavior is if you give an idiot enough rope, she’ll find a way to hang herself. That Mrs Bachchan was walking the plank was apparent from her reaction to Thackeray’s earlier tirade back in February. But, now that the Bachchan’s have apologised and the Thackeray’s have accepted their apology, it is time for the mass media to do their forensic examination of the carcass that remains and that brings us to this editorial in The Times Of India.
Whoever wrote this editorial must have some warped ideas about Indianness. If you read that editorial, you’ll realise that the author believes Mrs Bachchan was just being Indian when she taunted Maharashtrians with her remarks. Now, I don’t know if it is Indian to go about making sarcastic comments in public against other communities, but it seems ‘North-Indian’ to do so. I mean, Radio Mirchi did it to Indian Idol, Prashant Tamang. Why shouldn’t Mrs Bachchan?
Then, there are lies, utter lies and pathetic lies. “He chose a soft target to hit and timed it well.” Whoever wrote this editorial suggests that all this was timed by Thackeray to co-incide with the impending release of some Bachchan films. Oh really? Now, let’s see … when did Mrs Bachchan make those unprovoked comments? This past Saturday you say? Hmmm … Raj Thackeray must have asked her to make those comments just before the release, so that the producers and film distributors can breathe fire down the Bachchan’s backs. Must be masochists…
That brings us to the author of the editorial asking if mainstream Maharashtrians support the peculiar brand of the Sena’s regional pride. Well, my friend, this is where many Maharashtrians stand … many of us don’t agree with Sena’s tactics, but many understand where the grievances lie (and that is a separate blog post in itself for a later date).
Then there is this veiled threat (apparently the Sena’s are not the only ones who know how to make them) about targetting Maharashtrians. Well, I suppose the author is not referring to targetting icons of Maharashtrian origin like Sachin Tendulkar (not that the North Indian media including ToI spares him) or even President Pratibha Patil (not that she is an icon but she is Maharashtrian nonetheless) or even Medha Patkar (refer to my earlier post). If the author is referring to any harm that ordinary Maharashtrians might have to face, well let’s see the casualty data for North Indians in Maharashtra since the MNS campaign against them. Not one North Indian has been so much as injured or admitted to a hospital and the only person to die was a Maharashtrian in a stone throwing incident in Nasik. Beyond broken windshields of taxi cabs and some torn posters, the only thing that has been damaged is the ego of some people, who believe that they rule the country and the brand value of the Bachchans. Still, if these people want to attack Maharashtrians in other states, they are free to make this into a real culture clash …
And then how can we not expect the author to not read us ‘their’ rights? “No part of this country is exclusive home of any community …” Looks like the only thing that these people can figure out from the constitution are their rights, but not their responsibilities. Who is responsible for the Bimaru states? Instead of blaming MNS and Shiv Sena, why don’t you take the Laloo’s and the Mayawati’s and the Mulayam’s to task?
Then the author preaches us about cosmopolitanism and how great cities are made with labor from all over the world. Good to know that, but pray tell me how are great countries made? Are they made by fostering corruption and criminalization? Perhaps, by dominating other communities by forcing Hindi down the throats of other communities? Maybe by taunting the same people in whose state and city you build your houses? Besides, why should I assume a cosmopolitan identity in my own state and city? What’s wrong with taking local identities? Don’t equate cosmopolitanism with multi-culturism. Come and visit New York, Los Angeles and Chicago if you get chance. Check out what Americans feel about multi-lingualism (aka Spanish) and then postulate to us the benefits of cosmopolitanism.
And finally, this really caught my eye … “Bollywood best represent the city’s cosmopolitan soul.” We saw an example of it this past weekend didn’t we? I suppose bollywood style cosmopolitanism means taking digs at other communities and promoting cheap stereotypes of other communities. I suppose Bollywood style cosmopolitanism means plagiarising Western movies. I suppose it also means having its own caste system, where nincompoop sons and daughters with well known last names are promoted as super stars. If this is their ‘soul’, it is time some one put it to rest.
Now, here’s where Bollywood meets mainstream Maharashtrians. This clip is from the movie “Phir Hera Pheri” This clip is close to 2 hour (1hr 50min) into the movie and about 3min into this clip is the scene in which Johny Lever rips through a painting. When the knife cuts through the painting on the other side, the person on the painting looks remarkably similar to Sant Tukaram, one of the most popular Maharashtrian saints from the Bhakti movement. If bollywood cosmopolitanism stands for attacking the sentiments of the people of Maharashtra, then we really don’t need it in Mumbai. You can make Allahabad a cosmopolitan city, as you define it.
