I thought it couldn't get more bizarre when news channels repeatedly played sound bites of people loudly demanding a police/army rule or saying that states be taken over by corporate houses or when heavily botoxed chat show hosts were suggesting that we not pay our taxes or cast our votes but I was mistaken, things were to get weirder. In the ultra nationalistic fervour that has taken over the country post 26/11/08 non-conformist voices have become more unacceptable than ever. And very strangely and sadly the Indian mainstream media has taken up the role of a very non-liberal watchdog. It has been very fashionable to target and ridicule Arundhati Roy for a while now but this kind of intolerant behaviour has been taken too far this time, human rights activists and other civil society members are openly named, cornered and abused by news presenters (I will not call them journalists, that is being too generous). You just need to watch any prime time news show to figure out what I am talking about, you will see half a dozen news anchors trying to do a Tim Sebastian of the ' BBC's Hardtalk' fame (none come close though, you need to be more than loud and rude to do that). One name I do need to mention here though is that of Arnab Goswami, he is mentally unravelling in front of the cameras, he is getting louder, more reduntant than ever and seriously rude.
Anyone not toeing the flag-waving line is being ganged up on. The famously corrupt Indian police force has suddenly become sacred and anyone questioning their motives or behaviour on anything that happened in the past or is currently happening are being branded traitors. I find this kind of jingoism really scary. The human right and development activists in this country have been waging a battle for reforms on all levels for years, much before the placard bearing- NDTV (n it's spin-offs) watching middle class temporarily woke up. If independent thought, alternate opinions and free voices are unwelcome then we might as well resign ourselves to living in a dumbed down society where the only acceptable line of thought are those expressed by the establishment (the opposition is part of that system) and by Bollywood stars. I am posting the link to a very interesting article written by Arundhati Roy, it is not important one agrees (I do) with what she has written. They are arguments that need to be heard simply because they open a very important alternate line of thought.
The link-
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arundhati-roy/9-is-not-11_b_150637.html
3 comments:
I am not venting again this ideology because its the flavour of the day. I am living the situation every day, of a rising tide of unreasonable, cocky and destructive ideology that if indulged will usurp the Idea that is India. In a more devastating way than corruption, hunger and inefficiency can.
Out of every 5 people in my immediate family ( in laws) 4 openly represent the partisan ideology of the 'fire-breathing mullahs and the maniacs' who believe that Islam will, or should, rule the world. These are not as Arundhati Rao terms the 'the detritus of two Afghan wars". They are public school educated Indian citizens, brought up and indulged in this secular country. Indulged by our middle class intelligentsia, english speaking erudite, fair people who sympathize for the just cause. I was quite on that side till I had the close brush with reality in the last 2 decades. I hate religious bigotry. You know me, I would not stand out on a limb until I have genuine reason to do so.
From all my belief and bitter experiences, I believe that firstly we must stand up for an idea that is India. We are too bust trying to criticise in order to be fair. Criticisim and name calling has to have an objective ? Specially in the case of an individual who has the voice which can have far reaching impact. In that case of Ms. Rao, her prose is brilliant. " The blood of "martyrs" irrigates terrorism. " !! Wah, love the brilliance of your words madam. Implications be damned. Its always a pleasure ( sometimes painful pleasure) to read her language but when has she ever, if by mistake, stood up for the idea that is India. This woman, born and indulged in this country has only used her prowess to accuse her country. That is is my grouse against her. And her accusations have caused no civil change except that it gets her personal gain - peace prizes et all.
The gist of this brilliantly written article is as following :
LTTE of Sri Lanka were trained by the Indian Army.
India wants war with Pakistan to avoid facing up to the serious trouble building on our home front.
In 2008 MumbaI police, the elite National Security Guard, and the marine commandos of this nuclear-powered nation willingly let non elite people to be massacred at railways stations because they wanted save elite hostages inside the Taj from the cute 'boy terrorists". Stupid Indians also wanted prolonged TV coverage of the event since it was more exciting than Die Hard 2. Could be that she hates her famous NDTV cousin ?
In Kashmir where there is not adequate TV coverage, the same forces of this Stupid Indians, do not bother about hostages getting killed and quickly surmount the terrorists. Brainless duds.
India is a Police State. Police and the Army are glorified in India at the cost of the poor little underdogs, the politicians. Perhaps she may even accuse that the govt co funded Dabangg ?
Arnab Goswami, anchorperson of Times Now television, to call Arundhati Rao 'Disgusting" on National TV should have cost him his Job and amounts to incitement, as well as threat. But for Arundhati Rao to call India "bhooke Nange" ( despicable beggars in parlance") is her right to free speech !! Arnab Goswami didnt get the Booker or the Sydney Peace Prize, that loser !
India is a country with a shadowy history !
Anti-terrorism laws are not meant for terrorists ! Her final naive word on the subject is that terrorism can be contained by only one way - giving JUSTICE to the terrorists.
Give me a a break Arundhati Rao. We think you are disgusting.
Only one rhetoric question, whose idea of India?
Unfortunately, even i spent the first two decades of my life (the most impressionable ones) surrounded by bigots of a different sort. At the end of our extended debate all I want to say is I get where you are coming from but don't agree because I want more cocky voices to question this white washed, pan nationalistic idea of India.
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