India decides...

With a passion for modernism, I cannot help writing about the manner in which Indian democracy has beautifully grown over the years. I was not fortunate enough to be born in the 50s or 60s or 70s, but from what I have heard, and from what I have experienced, and from what I see today....I can see the impact of modernism on Indian democracy. It's almost "in-your-face". The very vitality of the Indian electorate is a testimonial to modernism. I am not sure how many of us here in India are passionate about voting, or even about the general political scenario (be apolitical, but do you even know what being political means?), but the one thing that is above all opinion and theory, is the presence of a strong, heartfelt desire - the desire for change. In India, we want to take the next level.

Because we are tired of being called part of the third world. We are tired of being known as a developing nation. We would like to transcend all boundaries, and evolve into a developed nation. A nation that can compete with the best in the world. A nation that can set the right precedents, and lead by example. A nation, which can, by its success, prove to the world that resilience can indeed lead to fame and glory. Yes, there can be no better example of resilience than the Indian success story. Someday, it will materialize into the great Indian dream.

I closely watched the previous general elections in 2004. The India shining campaign led by the BJP, the then incumbent government, was not successful against the Congress' traditional "Aam Admi (Common Man)" campaign. The biggest issue for the BJP was development. Their campaign focused solely on how much India had grown over the past 5 years of their governance. India Shining was indeed a very impressive and a very glamorous campaign that was well worth its money. The rebuttal for this campaign was, of course, the accusation of non performance, the supposedly "stale" and "unwarranted" idiosyncrasies of the incumbent government, and the manner the Congress wanted to make India Shine. And of course, the eternal weapon (something I have never understood, by the way!) - Communalism Vs. Secularism. I refuse to write anything further on that issue because I am just too tired of writing something I do not believe in fundamentally! That debate is for the religious. I am not religious (though I am not Godless).

This campaign is focusing on two major issues : First, the issue of national security. We have been victims of terror strikes from our neighbour and other anti national forces for quite some time now. And our response, I must say here, has not been great enough to merit a strong support from the international community. We need to rise out of our shells, shed our timid nature and come out strongly. The BJP's manifesto is just that : Mazboot Neta, Nirnayak Sarkar (Strong leader, decisive Government). The 'strong' tag is for Mr. Advani, the PM-in-waiting. The 'decisive' tag, is for the fact that the incumbent Congress led government has not been able to take some of the tough decisions the BJP thinks it would have made, had it been in power. Hence the logo. But it goes beyond that, please! The BJP has made a lot of well researched promises that look very appealing to the average voter like me. Because, like it or not, we in India are put off by the slightest act of terrorism that puts development on the back burner. We hate that ! I think I wrote some time ago that we want to take the next level. So if there is one thing I really know about my fellow voters, it is the fact that all of us need a promise.....that no matter what happens, the next level will be taken.

So then again you have the mad rush of people at election rallies, the festive atmosphere that makes one feel that the kaleidoscope of the Golden bird has been condensed to a meeting, the frivolous acts of the ground level political neta who never ceases to violate the model code of conduct issued by the EC but doesn't care nonetheless, the promises, the cars, the "raths" (that reminds me, Mr. Advani has not undertaken a rath yatra during this election campaign) and the media. This mixture has such sheer proportions, that it vitiates any and every feeling of abjection the average voter might carry on his shoulders. The feeling automatically changes to that of hope and expectation. This is something so typical about Indian elections, that no other country can ever dream of replicating.

I understand that the BBC is travelling across our country to cover the Indian elections this year. We borrowed their system of governance, but we have added our own flavours to it that makes it look unique. Remember, we are atleast 10 times the size of Britain. If democracy can survive with such vitality here, it can survive with vitality in any corner of the world. Hats off to you India...you are a jewel!

Modernism is leadership. Leadership is modernism.

When the mind is willing but the flesh is weak...

Most of us interpret the phrase - The mind is willing but the flesh is weak - as an expression of innocuous weakness - something that is purely temporary, something like writer's block, or the loss of appetite. I disagree. As a disciple of modernism, I feel that the phrase is an expression of an evil rusting....oh yes, an evil decay that cannot be reversed. Why? Because lost time does not come back.

If your mind is willing, but the flesh is weak, you have lost focus my friend !

And focus once lost is lost for good. Even if it means the loss of that one moment, a moment that you could have channelized better and achieved something, miniscule nonetheless. That one moment, is a moment of great triumph for someone across the world. That one moment, is surely going to go down in history as a moment to be remembered...by someone across the world. No moment is worthless, and yes, conversely, every moment is priceless. Modernism's little lesson.

The world is yours, to you belongs this vast and boundless sky...only if you respect every moment of your life for the sheer pricelessness it carries with it, and only if you use that priceless nature to do something better for yourself. Live for the moment? No way! I say, live the moment!

May every moment of your life be a defining one, a revolutionary one.....a modern one.