The 90% Plus Syndrome

The incredible SSC results this year reminded me of an emotional write up by my daughter who an year ago had experienced her moment of ignominy inspite of having scored a laudable 88% in ICSE. Reasons being a 98% score in the same exam by another girl from our residential complex and few 90% plus scores amongst her classmates.
I felt like a creep when my daughter wrote that she was aware of the disappointment that lay hidden below our outwardly optimism and how much she wished she could equal the golden girls just for seeing a genuine smile on our face. Her write up was a valuable insight into the minds of thousands of students who become victims of sky high expectations of their parents in a rat race that defies all logic.
I have been reliving these thoughts since last two days post the innumerable 90% plus scores amongst the kids in my know. My heart goes out for those kids who couldn't manage to ride the 90% plus wave inspite of best efforts on their part. I also empathize with the parents of these kids who experience the helpless feeling of 'why my child?'.
It may sound a bit routine and cliche, but have to say that when these kids grow up and look back in life, they would also like us realise that a 90% plus score in the boards does not necessarily guarantee a passport to a successful life ahead. Life is too precious to be measured in terms of your performance in Std. X or XII. So keep your head high and move ahead in life. The world awaits to embrace you.
And last but not least, irrespective of your score your parents love you unconditionally and your happiness means the whole world for them.

Melting of the Iron Man

He was accused of having facilitated the pogrom in Gujarat and was ostracized by the US and EU for ten long years. He was termed as a ruthless dictator and compared to Hitler. He was called Maut ka Saudagar and his opponents preferred a life term for him behind the bars. However, his die hard fans and supporters admired his steely resolve and larger than life persona and referred to him as a Loh Purush. But the Central Hall of the Parliament on 20th of May  2014 saw this Iron Man melt.
While the media was splashed with never before seen visuals of Modi breaking down while addressing the NDA, this show of raw emotion by the very man who was accused of being remorseless and unmoved by the events of 2002, triggered fresh debate on Modi. But this time around the debate was on his human side which so far lay submerged below the image of a strong man. Months ago when he was asked why he never apologized for 2002, he had created another controversy while trying to explain that he was equally human and could not tolerate loss of life of even a puppy.
It's common to see strong public figures hide their vulnerability. It is equally common to see their stronger egos suppress acceptance of failures that may blemish the aura around them. But being human they can't for long continue with the emotional build up. God knows how many fiercely private moments they would have spent crying their hearts out for having been part of events which they so hopelessly wished had never happened in the first place.
I am pretty sure even Modi would have undergone similar opening of floodgates of tears within the four walls of his heavily guarded room a hundred times since 2002. He was probably waiting for that single magical moment when he could cry publicly and absolve himself while not letting the nation know the real reason why he cried. But it's for us collectively as a mature and understanding nation to allow him redemption.

Freedom In Broad Daylight

Had always envied the generation that witnessed the epic freedom struggle and were fortunate to have seen the tricolor going up in the sky on 15th of August 1947. Had always visualised the emotional upheavals of our ancestors who had experienced the mixed feeling of liberated euphoria and partition anxiety. Always had this huge desire to experience something similar or even remotely similar that would change the trajectory of my country for the better. The prayers appear to have been answered today with the unprecedented mandate by the Indian electorate.

Both events are epoch making in their own right and have remarkable parallels.

15.08.1947 saw the successful culmination of a nation coming together against colonialists who had bled the country over a hundred years that had  reduced a vibrant and culturally rich populace into a nation of beggars fighting against each other on religious and caste basis.

16.05.2014 will probably see an end to more than half a decade of rule by one family and its self seeking sycophants who had collectively reduced a talented populace to citizens with tags that were difficult to shed, which in turn fanned  a sense of fear or aggression amongst such a divided population.

15.08.1947 marked the beginning of a new era of swaraj and nation building coupled with post partition horror stories.

16.05.2014 marks a new beginning in Indian polity by way of unprecedented mandate for an alternate party that is yet to shed its divisive image. While the mandate is given in hope of good governance there is an equal apprehension on the status of minorities under the new regime. The onus is now on Narendra Modi and his team to prove the contrary and pursue the single point agenda of development of our nation. It's for him, for his team and in larger sense for each one of us to understand that being Indian is the only religion that will ensure us a better tomorrow.

Its irony is that while we as a nation had witnessed daylight robberies by those in power, the promise for change has also  materialised in broad daylight.
Into such freedom in broad daylight, let my country awake.

Twilight

Its been 19 days since I proudly displayed inked index finger of my left hand. But true to its name and purpose the indelible mark refuses to fade. Today when I look at this mark I hope that the symbolism extends to the promises made by the party and its candidate who were fortunate to garner my precious vote. While many were quick to remind me of the insignificance of my vote as a faceless common man on the street, I felt like a paying customer who shelled out a precious resource in expectation of quality service. As a 45 year old man I have seen half a dozen general elections since I turned 18 but for the first time in life I overcame cynicism that had become a general malaise. For the first time I sensed an urge to be part of the metamorphosis that my country was undergoing and felt a need to be part of history in making. With the atmosphere so charged up getting swept away was inevitable. The zeal and optimism for a better tomorrow was not there even when I voted for the first time after turning 18.

After  almost a month of staggered exercise across the length and breadth of the country the destiny of the nation now lies sealed in the innumerable EVMs that will decide whether we witness a sunrise as promised or collectively we will be staring at another term of indecisiveness and chaos in the name of democracy. Whatever be the eventuality, in less than 100 hours from now, we would be realising the intrinsic value of our votes. Till then its a sense of hope for a better tomorrow. Its three more days of twilight.

Understanding the Priorities in Life

In the journey called life you come across thousands with whom you have shared moments that bring a smile on your face even years later. Amongst these thousands, few manage to remember even mundane things that you did or said years ago. Its these few who ought to matter most in your lives today, because for them you mattered a lot then and perhaps even today.