Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Father, Son and the Country

I know what I am about to write can very easily be categorised as immature drivel. But I am sure most of you reading my blog (if anybody at all) will agree that in India, "growing up and becoming mature" means accepting your fate, accepting the injustices you see daily, accepting that your life has no meaning and that you do not deserve even the bare minimum civil liberties if you are not the son or daughter of either a politician, or a very rich man, or a gangster or a cop or a bureaucrat....
I am patriotic. Have no doubts on that. But now I am a father too and I love my son. He is three and a half and if you ask me, he is growing up too soon for my liking.

But do I really want him to grow up in India? Of course! Should have been the answer but it is not. Everyday I read of incidents that make me wonder if it is not my responsibility as father to provide a healthy social environment to grow up in and into.

I know I am easy to categorise as a cynic and a skeptic, but when I see five such stories on one web page, my cynicism and my skepticism grow stronger.
I know, I know! All these stories are repeated almost daily..... then why get bothered today??? Absolutely right!..... In fact such news is so common that the average Indian has become so insensitive and hopeless that this is considered the "reality". yes many will be brave enough to admit that it is a "sad reality" but the reality nevertheless!

The only way you can hope to live through your life without being victimized is by hoping to stay below the radar and by never ever confronting the “system”. And if you are unfortunate enough to bump into the system in any of its avatars, you can only hope to cope up with the pain and humiliation.

I grew up here but would not have done so had I ever had a choice. But I can choose for Rahul. My biggest failure would be if he at my age turns out just another bitter cynic that I am.

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