An interesting case of personal branding

When I walked the first mile of the long walk (and indeed that was a long one from Ramlila to Jantar Mantar) in support of a movement that was started as against corruption that prevails across all sections , little did I know that this would snowball into one of the most peaceful and hugely participated nation wide protest. It was almost six months ago when we had marched across the heart of the capital. At that time this event never flickered on any news channel and could barely manage a small space on less visible pages of some news papers. It was devoid of the youth in the numbers you see now and never had the glamour that has spun off now. Then, it was not just a stationed agitation but one followed by a long march - not in cars breaking laws (many of us have witnessed the scenes of law flouting some on front seats of their vehicles) but on foot with placards. Thankfully then, Anna fasted. ‘Thankfully’ I say not because I subscribe to fasting as a resort, but because it finally got media involved and the politicians wary – not for any ethical reason though. The government could hardly afford an old martyr as much as media could ill afford to miss this potential source for traction and TRP. Already the voices of consent and opposition have been raised through different medium, so I refrain myself from choosing either strictly. What is not talked about yet in adequacy is how this changes (ought to change) the social outlook. While we have an old voice that represents us, nation building is essentially a job in youth’s parlance. We must carry this momentum to sustain this energy throughout our lives and the lifetime of those close to us. Some questions that we should ask ourselves – Will we now come out in large numbers and vote? Will more of us take the leaders’ hat and contest an election? Will we define “coolness” quotient by our acts of honesty – by not taking bribes, by not cheating in exams, by not being unfair to our fellow men and by not allowing ourselves to be silent under any oppression? Or will it just be an extravaganza of will that lasted just a few days and died timidly.

Our value proposition as a citizen of India ought to elevate after this galvanizing movement. The values that run through the heart of this movement must be imbibed in our personal lives. The tangible outcome of the movement can be an effective Lokpal Act, however, the moral fountain has more potential to reform our nation. Let us brand and package ourselves as citizens of an elite democracy with a rock solid intent to build what we call a dream Nation based on the principles of an effective democracy.

August 15th , 2011

Shocked, dismayed, hurt, bruised, slapped and embarrassed by the recent undercurrents of political shame and Sporting debacle, we Indians went on with our national duties on this 15th Aug – unfurled the national flag across cities, flew kites and enjoyed the respite from the Monday morning blues. A usual affair at my home .Ensuing from the intensity of zeal owing to the importance of the day, celebrations had the same vigour as every year. Glad that this time my father was around who drove the atmosphere of celebrations in a traditionally sublime way – needless to say he was up before I was, conducted the pooja, hoisted the flag with a delightful exuberance and treated us to traditional Indian delicacy – the Jalebi. All these years my family has had a fixed agenda on 26th Jan and 15th Aug. An important role is played by the television which helps us know who lies what (oops.. who says what) . With series of special programs stuffed with war songs of immaculate packaging and of course the Gandhis and Bhagat Singhs all day on the movie channels, it makes a full day. Though, dad stuck to his routine of listening to the PM speech , I gave it a miss. I could not pay attention with the same glimmer of hope that he has to listen to a speech that would never materialize or would only showcase the rosy side of a battered nation. What is a speech without conviction anyways? – a compendium of simple statements. I thought of delving into the details but the well detailed media makes that redundant. The media has already (in Santosh Desai’s words) “blurred the lines between conjecture, rumor, opinion and news making it difficult for us to get a sense of what is really happening ‘out there’. And it does so with such uniform intensity that it becomes difficult to tell the trivial from the important”. To conclude, I would just like to wish that we grow more mature as a nation, a little more tough with the pursuit of our resolves and tonnes of more care toward the underprivileged.

Rahul