One for Democracy

I am an Indian.  I was told in my formative years in school, that I belong to the biggest democracy. I was told that I am given rights, that, if violated, could be contested, fought for. I was told, in the many years of rehearse and regurgitating that my classrooms forced out of me, that many a lives worked and fought for me to lead a life of respect where I am given, just given, Rights. While there are others who live under tyrants, capitalists and communists, I was given RIGHTS. I was told all of this, and I was made to rehearse and regurgitate and I did. And so I remember.

As I began to form my own opinions because of this mighty democracy that was born into, I began to witness, bit by bit, year after year, one by one, my rights being contorted, and made a mockery of by mobs. By unreliable, dishonest, undemocratic mobs. I found that my country’s most celebrated painter had to die in exile. That I cannot dress the way I want to, hang out in the places that I want, it began to dawn on me, that maybe, just maybe, what I was taught was inaccurate. Text book. A mere presentation. I began to see, that maybe, my democracy is a sham.

But what kept my faith hanging by the frail chord of an ailing string, was sadly the fact, that I am not a painter. So nothing irked me per say.

Today it seems, the shackles of my democracy press against my veins. Caging me into a forced lifestyle.
Today, it seems, that my Freedom of Choice is being taken away from me. And I am hurt, humiliated, frustrated and disillusioned by this mighty democracy. Today, I am tired of this sham.

You cannot tell me what movies I should watch, the PG13 phase is over now. I am an adult. I work. I pay my taxes in thousands, every year. And I am a human being, brought up with the ideologies of a democracy that offers me choice, opinion, liberty and dignity. All of which are being taken away from me today.

I have the RIGHT to like a particular kind of music. Personally, I love folk, rock, heavy metal in any language, so  long as it makes musical sense to me, I like french music, I’m beginning to dive into the world of house and techno, I don’t like trance at all, I love jazz, fusion, psychedelic, and gosh, the list is endless. I MAKE A CHOICE to listen to the music i like, or explore new music. But ONLY I get to make that choice. My mother never asked me not to listen to something because it wasn’t her kind of music. She, having been brought up by the same ideologies of our mighty democracy, allowed me to enjoy my rights, allowed me to make my own choices.

Why do you believe you can force me to listen to the kind of music you want me to? Or eat at the places you think I should? You are not my mother, not my guardian, and certainly not my friend, and your absolute disrespect for my opinions, doesn’t warrant you or your opinions to matter to me. Not one bit.

I am insulted by, what now looks like the custodians of my democracy. When you tell me I can’t dance at a club, because you want to curb bar dancers, you are then telling me, that I, a hard working tax payer in this country, a natural citizen of India, am dancing for money at a club. You are insulting me by telling me that you are unable to see a difference between me and a bar dancer, and I am insulted, not because I think bar dancers are bad, but simply because I am not one. And I don’t want to be categorized with one, just like I wouln’t want to be categorized with a politician, because, I AM NOT ONE.

I DO NOT want to listen to hindi songs, or Kanada songs when I’m at a pub/club/bar, because I DO NOT ENJOY THEM. I MADE THAT choice. DOn’t you see? My democracy says I’m allowed to. And when I’m paying my hard earned money for a sisxty of whiskey I bloody well get to listen to the kind of music I want to. If clubs/bars/pubs that play local music do not survive then it does not make any BUSINESS sense. You cannot FORCE me into giving them business.

So maybe I like to dance at a party in a club, maybe I just like to sit on a comfortable couch with my friends, drink my drink, pepsi, wine, coke, ginger ale, I get to choose see, maybe I like  none of that. maybe on most days, I sit at home, with my doggie and my music and a book. But are you telling me, that should I WANT to, YOU are taking away MY ability to CHOOSE where I’d like to go, what I’d like to do there?

I do not get into brawls, hell, the most number of brawls I’ve seen are on your tiny unplanned roads in Bangalore. I am not a hooker and I don’t know of any club that I go to that provides the service, I am a human being, who loves different things, I love fashion, I love chicken, I love beef , I hate pork, I do not like the sambar made in Karnataka, I prefer the Tamil Sambar, I am a universe of likes and dislikes and YOU CANT TAKE THAT AWAY FROM ME. I do not break the law and don’t you even dare to tell me that liking loud western music with my beef pepper fry is a crime. Don’t tell me letting music flow through my veins and letting the music talk through my body is a crime. DON’T.

You’re spitting on my Freedom of Expression. You’re trampling over my right to choose, and the only thing I can think of is fleeing. Going away from a place that does not understand me, respect me, my dignity and my right to choose. I want to leave this country, because I am disrespected here. My art is disrespected here. I want to leave to a place, where my fundamental rights aren’t toyed with. Next time somebody says this country’s going to the dogs, I won’t stop them.

Stop your false democratic parades. This democracy is a sham. And today, I give up.

The Lost Accountability of this Democracy

We've got the titles in place. The offices occupied.  The papers strewn, and the promise of goodness, all in its place. But somewhere, we've got to admit, there's a lot of action missing. The drama exists. The action, sits comfortably as prints in the pages that house and profess those very titles. Of course, we are a Democracy. Because that's what that giant book concludes with all of its many amendments.

Vox populi, power to the people, the great rule of the people, we the people, all of it. Who are the "We" in this people that we've become. "We" seemed to have been herded into one giant bunch with patriotic, heart warming, goose pimple bringing words like "we", "together", "unity in diversity", "hum hain Bharati".
I don't think we asked for this consolidation of our billion emotions into one humongous "we" that WE are well aware, doesn't really exist. To that we nod one great nod of approval- at the truth of "our" in-existence.  "We", is just a convenience. A shorter word to use than "all those", "each and every", "me, she, then that one, that one, that one, and that one, and also that one". "WE" just gets so much easier.

But that of course is beside the point I've taken time off from my other wise event-less Saturday to try and say something.  The question that's really got me thinking here is, where is the existence and rule of the people, when "we" as a people, are not an active people? So where then, are all the decisions being made, if its not me, and you, and the girl next door?

By the looks of it, it is clear that not much good is happening around here. But then again, there is some order in chaos and someone sure HAS to be making all the decisions for "us". The ones that WE were promised to be able to make ourselves. The ones that WE decided, were not worth our time.

See I like Democracy, because technically, it lets me have an opinion. But I think I'm just as much of a disgrace to this democracy that sadly, doesn't need anymore capitalizing, as you, and you and most of you.

It took a conversation with someone, a cup of nicely made Grandma's Special Tea and the very persistent smoke of a seemingly addictive cigarette for me to realise this. 

I know how much we love to point fingers at them, because they did this, all the wrongs, the few rights, they did them all. They anger us, they make our blood boil, they leave us to shake our heads in repetitive disapproval and tuts of how this country's going nowhere, and in effect, so aren't we. Unless of course we have the money for that flight away and someone or somewhere to go to from there.
They don't know how to do anything, and all they do, is bring us down.

Sure why not, but one rebuttal for a question and if we were to ask "who 'they' are, we don't know!" I know I've asked myself this question on many an angry mornings back when I did used to keep myself aware by reading the paper. But My mornings have been nice off late, and you can only imagine why.

See, but I see the truth now. Because the truth is, what ticked me off was the simple fact that I wanted change, but I was willing to do just about nothing to make that change happen. How is a democracy to run in all its greatness, with an ineffective people? WE have not spoken. WE haven't worked, WE haven't fought, We haven't questioned, and so, quite plainly, WE have failed.

The yous and mes have comfortably lost our own accountability in the effective functioning of our ignoramus Democracy. This great numerical number of a billion that consolidates Us into this country, has forgotten the power it holds and how abused this power has been, by its inactivity.

All the They's we hate so much, are right there sticking their fingers out in the dark gali-s of their blind eyes. Because in the absence of a people, we witness today, the absence of a real Democracy.