FUNDAMENTAL CHANGE- IDIOTS OR GENIUS

Concept learning and application is a casualty of modern education and societal mores. The more important thing is that the culture of accepting the right values from any other person has vanished more or less. The value is determined by the person who delivers this message. A distinguished personality such as the noted litterateur R. K. Narayan could make no dent on the system. His eloquence was lost on the general public and the eminent personalities. The same message is packaged in a different style by Chetan Bhagat and it draws accolades. This concept is borrowed and filmed with some variations by Hirani starring Aamir Khan. The brilliance of the message is lauded and the film has become a subject matter of many a blog and review.I personally would rate Swami and his friends at a much higher level than Bhagat's book but the question is who is available to listen to a jarring note on the jingling music of the box office.

The impact of a English television serial Yes Minister was well received but the subtle cartoons of R K Laxman did not have the same effect. It is not the argument that the serial ought to have been trashed or the book of Bhagat is to be put aside but the more fundamental question is as to why do we lap up certain things from certain personalities and trash the same words when uttered by another. A psychological wonder to be resolved.

The British Raj left behind an imperial bureaucracy and an adulation for anything foreign. Over a period of time the Indian aristocracy has also found a place in it.With the advent of 24x7 TV channels, we find ourselves dancing to the tunes of the anchors of these shows on any issue. Does it mean that the thinking cap has been doffed by all others?

The wry sense of humour would not be lost if one has walked through the streets of Bangalore over the years. Earlier, the pedestrians had a right of path on what was popularly called a footpath. The vehicles in those days were few and far. The pedestrians outnumbered the vehicles but the right of way was allowed to both. Today we find single occupant four wheelers by the dozens on the streets. People complain of traffic jams. Grade separators, underpasses, flyovers, expressways are some of the jargons which have come into play. Foot paths became sidewalks and then slowly disappeared from the horizon. Once upon a time the city was a haven for sparrows and the day is not far off when we would be having a lesson about the history of these pedestrian walk paths and may be a educational tour to a far off land where they are still preserved as a relic. Skywalks and underpasses have lost track of the needs of the physically challenged and the senior citizens. The concept of facilitating a smooth passageway for pedestrians has given way to a statistical existence of a pathway.

Recently, the magazine The Week had come out with articles on several controversial peraonalities. In one of the articles, the author had chronicled the various good works of the leading columnist Khushwant Singh. In this article it was pointed out that the author identified the craving of the general public and switched his articles to such topics. People deplored him in public but he was widely read. His coffers jingled and the practical man had made his living. He also had the satisfaction at satiring the gullibility and hypocrisy of the public at large. The concept he was actually putting across was asking a person to be himself. This was lost on the people. Now the various living gurus conduct classes and sell books where one is asked to be himself. They are lauded, felicitated, crowned and crooned about. Whither has gone the most brainy species of the animal kingdom?

Recently, I received a mail sent by Narayanamurthy to the Infoscians. He deplored the habit of sitting late against working late. The forward of the mail was also fast and across borders. People appreciated the mail. They continued sitting late. People who ignored the mail were working late. The irony was not lost on anyone. Imagine an entrepreneur of a small scale industry saying this to his employees. He would have been termed as superlicious, overbearing and atrocious. The Left would have swung into action to deliver the right punch and the media barons would have had a field day.

Essentially, today the matter is who said, when did he say, where did he say, how did he say and finally if time permits what did he say.

But the focus should be on what is said, how it is said, when it is said, where it is said and lastly as to who said such a good word.

Obviously we should lose the habit of saying Vivekananda said "Arise, awake, stop not till the goal is reached." It should be said "Arise, awake, stop not till the goal is reached." was said at, in the context of, in the manner of by Vivekananda. The suspense of the personality is to be kept for the end. We have to root out the personality cult to bring in the original concept oriented strong fundamentals. Will we awaken ourselves to this reality or fight over the credits to be given to Bhagat and Hirani or Aamir Khan?