Gandhi... still rocks and rolls?

Shall we dance? Looks like Yul Bryner in The King & I

On the eve of the great Gandhi’s birthday, some random musings.

 It’s interesting to see that Gandhi’s visage continues to adorn Indian currency notes of all denominations, and that the current dispensation in Delhi continues to cash in on the memory of the man who stubbornly insisted that India must be inclusive, embracing people of all faiths and persuasions.


There are a lot of folk in the business of Gandhi glorification, with the express aim of earning a quick buck or two, all in the name of homespun ideas and swadeshi. We’ve seen several of these khadi-sporting thugs weave their oily ways around, attempting to get on the boards of various ‘Gandhian’ institutions, and even open up a few of their own.

 One also hears of a misguided, muddleheaded, chappie running around wearing Gandhi caps and homespun trousers with a clutch of credulous Caucasians [read white-haired American non-violence enthusiasts and such] in an attempt to ‘bring swaraj’ to Champaran in the form of a college of social work, where American students would cross the seas to come to and work among the villagers. Good idea, but hare-brained, considering that the fellow is known for nothing more than ‘spinning dreams’ - that sound good at face value but on closer observation look like social work ponzi schemes. Beware of the broom-wielder from Bhitharwa, somebody told me, he’s the March hare who’ll lead you down a rabbit hole and you’ll find no wonderland, just a very hungry python waiting to be fed!


Okay, so here’s an argument for you. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi wasn’t that great a visionary. He had some interesting ideas, yes. Charisma, yes. He could write well, definitely. A leader of the masses, he gave them something to believe in, and he walked the talk. But he had flaws. Oh, he was flawed! He used his fast-to-death weapon to blackmail Ambedkar from initiating action that would truly liberate the Dalits from Brahmanical dominance. I don’t want to really dwell on all his ‘experiments’ with truth and sexuality, some of which sadly, we will never know unless we can get our hands on the entire Gandhi-Kollenbach correspondence. 

You women activists cry yourselves hoarse and want to bobbitize every full blooded male who eyeballs the desi Delilah. ‘Eve teasing’, ‘inappropriate touching’ ‘attempt to molest’ and what-not! You protest. You hold forth long on the primetime views that masquerade as news. What would you do if an old dodderer who insists on sleeping in his birthday suit beside two girls young enough to be his grand-daughters? Ignore it and say, it’s all for a good experiment? Seriously?

There’s a school of thought that believes that had he not been assassinated by that chap Godse, he would have probably grown older, weirder, and have lost all relevance in a few more years. But we’ll never know, shall we?

Let's face it folks, love him, hate him, you couldn't ignore Gandhi then, and you can't ignore him a hundred and fifty years on....