A few years ago all that the world knew about India were basmati rice, snake charmers, kings and palaces and of course, the indomitable Ganges. Now you would wonder why I have chosen to name the Ganges thus, but is it a mere coincidence that a river which cleanses the Hindu soul of all blemishes is in dire need of a thorough sanitization drive?
Now, what else does India have to exhibit to the world outside? Of course, there is cricket, as there was cricket in 1983. Dhoni and his pack of daring, media savvy, young boys are what has transformed cricket from an Englishman’s game to a cult. A cult, which has every Indian from age 5 to 77 as its member.
Then of course, we have the array of Indian beauty queens and their impeccable answers about world peace and removing poverty from third world nations, who have won accolades for the country. We love our beautiful women, and now the world loves them too. Whatever they say really does not need to make sense, as long as they look good on the front cover of Vogue.
I am not using this space to write about India being the world’s back office hub. It’s a fact that we very well know and a lot of print space has been used up listing the benefits of outsourcing.
Two days ago, ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ a movie about how luck and destiny play God to a poor ragtag kid from the Mumbai slums, won eight Oscars. It’s a feel good movie, especially in these recession-struck times when people getting laid off and factory units shutting down, are news bits that no more cause anxiety, just a sense of the I-knew-it-was-coming feeling.
India with its huge population stands to make a global impact. The country has produced eminent scientists, doctors, actors, musicians, sportspersons, journalists, writers and economists. But then, this educated class form just a miniscule of the Indian people. The real India dwells in villages, where electricity and water are still rationed commodities, where education is meant only for boys and dowry is a must for girls, where women are given a little more value than cattle. Yes, the country has progressed, but that progress means nothing to Meera, who like her mother did, walks 12 miles daily to fetch water for her family. And needless to say, there are many such Meeras in India even today.
Who will take up their cause?
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