Yesterday I got an SMS which read " 40 lacs people have registered for Bhrashtachar mitao Satyagrah with Swami Ramdev Ji, so far. What about you?" It further mentions a toll free number on which you are supposed to give a missed call to support the cause. Of course, it is quite fashionable to support a cause, whether you really care or not. (I still have not given a missed call. Old fashioned me!) And even more fashionable to start a cause! Looks like everybody is jumping into the Satyagrah bandwagon, after Anna Hazare's success. Its like a sudden enlightenment or I suspect (how mean I can be!) it is a trump card for getting more popular with the junta. And the poor common man! His hopes and aspirations rise, only to nosedive after the brouhaha ends. For the time being it looks like we are geared for change. But then its back to business after the uproar dies. Well.... what can poor you and me do? We are aam junta after all, who has forgotten how to vote!
Coming back to the SMS, my funny bone was tickled after reading it. Why? I could not quite understand how Ramdevji is going to tackle or lessen corruption by holding Satyagrah. Let me make a wild guess. Maybe, this andolan will prick the conscience of our netajis and they'll swear to come out clean; Or maybe they'll donate all the wealth they have fleeced from us, for the betterment of the nation; Or they'll give up their crooked ways and lead a spartan life; Or the corrupt person at the grass root level will give up this life of sin and become a yogi; I can rattle off a long list of guesses.
But then I was rudely shaken when my friend yells "shut your trap and give a missed call to that goddamn number. After all, this is a golden chance to do something for yourself".
"Yourself!", I muse.
"Yes, you know what? Participate in this Satyagrah of Medha Patkar......,"
"Ramdevji", I correct.
"Yeah, whatever," says the friend, carelessly, "click photos, take video and upload it in a social networking site. Just imagine! how popular we will get."
"But there'll be many like us", my ignorant voice blurts.
"Arre, just create a small controversy there, and the media will be after you for some sound bytes. Isn't it a good idea?", asks my intelligent friend.
Good idea or not, I don't know. But all this has given me a bad pain in my neck. So I'm off to the nearby mall to buy Ramdev Baba's DVD for tackling neck pain.
Coming back to the SMS, my funny bone was tickled after reading it. Why? I could not quite understand how Ramdevji is going to tackle or lessen corruption by holding Satyagrah. Let me make a wild guess. Maybe, this andolan will prick the conscience of our netajis and they'll swear to come out clean; Or maybe they'll donate all the wealth they have fleeced from us, for the betterment of the nation; Or they'll give up their crooked ways and lead a spartan life; Or the corrupt person at the grass root level will give up this life of sin and become a yogi; I can rattle off a long list of guesses.
But then I was rudely shaken when my friend yells "shut your trap and give a missed call to that goddamn number. After all, this is a golden chance to do something for yourself".
"Yourself!", I muse.
"Yes, you know what? Participate in this Satyagrah of Medha Patkar......,"
"Ramdevji", I correct.
"Yeah, whatever," says the friend, carelessly, "click photos, take video and upload it in a social networking site. Just imagine! how popular we will get."
"But there'll be many like us", my ignorant voice blurts.
"Arre, just create a small controversy there, and the media will be after you for some sound bytes. Isn't it a good idea?", asks my intelligent friend.
Good idea or not, I don't know. But all this has given me a bad pain in my neck. So I'm off to the nearby mall to buy Ramdev Baba's DVD for tackling neck pain.
Lol! Nice piece.....
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