I don't know about the rest of the world but we Indians are too outward looking
I don't know about the rest of the world but we Indians are too outward looking. We always look out for inspiration that's not indigenous. So when the not-so-famous grand daughter of legendary poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan, Namrita, put on canvas the lines of her grandfather's masterpiece Madhushala, it not only came as a pleasant shock, but also as an instrument of hope for reinstating this generation's faith in legacies our very own.u00a0
Impressed, I instantly changed my Facebook and Gtalk status messages from 'Lust is the most sustainable form of love' to 'Baji na mandir me gharhiyali, chadhi na pratima par mala, baitha apne bhawan muwazzil, dekar masjid me tala, lute khazane narpatiyo ke, giri gadhro ki deeware, rahe mubarak peene waale, khuli rahe ye madhushala'u00a0-- some of the stalwart's famous lines.
Within few minutes, a chat window popped up to say, "What's cheap lines. Kisi truck ke peeche se churaya kya?" It was the embarrassment that hit me. Someone even asked me to change it.u00a0 Why do we hate Hindi so much? I, for one, didn't like Michael Jackson too much, nor Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. And I get dirty stares each time I express that honestly. It's like I've forgotten to wear my pants. "Probably, you don't understand class," they say. The same people who understand 'class' don't seem to appreciate an actor like Abhay Deol in Manorama Six Feet Under, Shivmani's live percussions, Wadali Brothers' spirit in Lal Meri Pat Rakhiyo and Atal Bihari Vajpayee's book of poems, Gunjan. Never heard of half of this stuff, don't worry, I won't accuse you of not understanding 'class'!
Let's cut to our everyday lingo. Why is the F word considered far classier than its vernacular C counterpart? Utter it, and it shows you've come with Shakespearean wisdom from consecrated convents.u00a0 Phew. But then, I'm reminded of this: 'Hey Life! Don't get crazy for this mortal world. You can't find true love here. This is a beautiful trap so stop wandering here. Look upward. That's the only place where you can find long lasting relations. There's the heaven, there's the source of ultimate pleasure where you have your own people.' Maithili Sharan Gupt wrote that, since you won't know. And I don't need Shakespeare till I'm not done with Harivansh.
Kumar Saurav is Senior Reporter cum Sub Editor, MiD DAY Delhi
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