Honestly, I forgot the password to my personal blog. Its been ages since I posted anything constructive ; been ages since I posted anything. Being Indian, I would fail miserably, if I don't contribute to the social media activism against corruption. Hence, this post.
Venue : 153, L.B.Road, Adyar, Chennai - 20.
Time : 16th August - Indefinitely
I thought I should take a day off, make myself available at the fasting center in Chennai in protest of the Jokepal bill which the Congress advocates. A half-constructed building at Adyar plays host to the events and activities of IAC, Chennai. The Indian tricolor is seen all over the place, candlelight vigil, men and women of all kind, volunteers who remind you of 'Ini oru vidhi seivom', chants of Bharat Mata Ki Jai, Vande Mataram, Thamizh slogans in favor of Jan Lokpal, 36 Indians / Chennaites who are on an indefinite fast and survive on the smell of few lemons - The energy there is unbelievable. The protest has risen on an exponential scale and I get a faint sense of how 1947 would have been. End of the day, I realized - Change is tough. Change is slow. But, change is inevitable. Fast. Fight. Below, are five moments, which captured my imagination and owned my heart.
At Five.
Unity in diversity will remain India's biggest unsolved mystery. The support was something, I never expected. A candle light in one hand, an Indian flag high up, in the other. People who hardly knew each other, lending their candle light to light the rest. Co ordinated, across India, this was something which wasn't new, yet this was something symbolically special.
At Four :
The last thing I would expect, was to see a sweet, little girl, dressed in a black and red top, wave the Indian flag. Certainly, she wouldn't know the difference between Lokpal and Jan Lokpal, or Raja and Kejriwal. She, sure did know, that her country was important and that she had to be there. In a trice, she was the cynosure of every eye.
( BTW, photo credits goes to - Ashwath Ram )
At Three :
My friend and myself, bumped into two students. One from Spain and one from Peru. Surprised, I asked them what brought them there. The Spanish girl, pointed at the Indian flag she was holding. She even asked me, why I wasn't holding one.
At Two :
Make shift arrangements, with limited resources have been made for the fast. A raised stage, covered with mattresses and lemons provided for people who were fasting indefinitely. Just below the stage, were a few more sheets laid for people who were on a relay fast ( for a fixed period of time ). My eyes were focussed on an old man, dressed poorly, unkempt white hair, lying down on a corner of the stage with a lemon on an indefinite fast. It struck me hard. Here was I, a 21 year, old guy, doing nothing better than clicking pictures. I nudged my friend. He nudged me back and asked me to look at the other end of the fasting stage. An youngster was lying down on an indefinite fast. On either side of him, was a crutch. It struck me harder.
At One.
"Epdi irruku - Indha pudhu thozhil ? ( 03:40 )" - I've listened to this dialog from Kitty umpteen number of times and felt the thrill every single time. Rajnikanth. Period.
It was heartening, and least surprising to see him be an active leader of IAC, Chennai. Engaging in an open and frank conversation, which lasted more than half an hour, he narrated an incident which was close to his heart.
A student had walked up to him after a talk at an engineering college, held his hand and said - " I'd like to be honest. I want to join the cause. My parents in my village, object to it and ask me to concentrate on my academics. What do I do ? " Kitty, walked up to the stage with the student. The question was received with an applause. It was every student's dilemma.
Kitty said, asking him to reply to his mother, "Ma, I love you so much. I'll be a responsible student and study well. However, over the past days, I've become a little more responsible and mature. I promise, I'll take care of you. But, this is the time, that your elder sister needs me. I need to take care of your elder sister - Mother India, now.
That, I felt, summed up the very essence of the entire movement. India needs every child of hers to fight against corruption. The future is the reflection of the present, and that present begins, Right Now.
Be there, 153, L.B.Road,Chennai.
No comments:
Post a Comment