One
of my well wisher and friend Mr Rajesh asked me to write a blog on Separation
of AP...I was wondering what I can write as I did not have definite view /
opinion or agreement/disagreement on the issue. I was not sure and am still
uncertain of the implications that this decision will lead to. Like its
happening in all aspects of life, its difficult to arrive at the absolute truth
as to what is right and for whom? Why was this decision taken? Its easy perhaps
to conclude but i believe in world drama and the author GOD cannot be
questioned or proved wrong. How many decisions in our own life are 100% own and
how many actually happened because they had to?
2
days after the congress announced this decision, i was going in an Auto
rickshaw early in the morning to attend to one of my daily practises. The
journey of 4 kms was so pathetic that, i felt i actually travelled on a
mountain which does not have the road. The road was orthopaedic doctor’s delight
and was literal hell. Apart from my suffering, i was feeling very sad for the
auto guy as he has to put up with this 12 hours a day and all his life.. How
sad his life must be? Hence these decisions like telangana or united AP, will
not alter their life as life goes on for the majority the same way as they were
as they will continue to be poor, vulnerable and exploited. This is the
scenario across india as we are witnessing acute penury of leadership and not
anything else.
Then
i came back and chatted up with my watchman who is from some place in Godavari
district. He was very vehement and said his life does not change as the
apartment guys aren’t any way going to stop exploiting him and they will
continue to pay him less. My home helper echoed the same feelings. But there is
hope for many and despair for many. As of now, both hope and despair are at the
perception level only. I felt, probably
the most affected people would be businessmen, government employees of all cadres
immediately and about the rest, time will tell. Many of the repercussion could
still be environmental and normal social changes influenced. No one can say for
sure about what could happen based on this decision. It will all be
hypothetical and imaginary as of now.
But
i just thought about my child hood and Hyderabad and AP. The first time i ever
heard about telangana movement was in mid seventies when my father said that,
there was commotion and protest in one theatre of Hyderabad when a song from
telugu film referred to bhagyanagaram ( Hyderabad) as the place of 3 crores
Andhra people. I quite found it amusing when i was 8 year old as to why people
had issues about just a song.
Later on, may be before 80’s i remember quite
a few people grumbling and complaining that, the so called original people from
Hyderabad are not able to buy property locally but people from Andhra are doing
it all around. Even then, i could not connect to that thinking, as for me it
was people who could afford and who had opportunities versus people who did not
have and nothing to do with the region. I come from a family who settled in
Hyderabad for more than 6 generations and over 200 years and the essence of
Hyderabad is communal harmony, love, acceptance of all cultures and laid back
attitude.
We
had all communities and all languages influences in sultan bazaar, koti, esamia
bazaar, kutbiguda, kachiguda area( THE CBD) and for us Chikkadpalli, Nallakunta
and secunderabad was very far and crossing of chaderghat was unheard. Life in
these areas of original twin cities, was uncomplicated and unassuming. We were
not ambitious not wanted to have wealth. It was all about living happy and
eating well. Only cricket and sometimes hockey got us the Indian feeling. And of course, elders at home and teachers in
school were always driving the patriotic fervor to keep us feel good about our
country. August 15th and 26th January hence were great
days of excitement and emotion.
Honestly
until we saw tamas the television series on DD, not much was known to common
general persons like me about the pain and impact of partition of India . We
Hyderabadis were oblivious to most pains that the country faced. Only in 1979,
we witnessed curfew and disturbance erupted owing to some freak incidents.
Hyderabad welcomed all people, all cultures and all regions and accepted as
one.. We still live in the same glory.
May
be during early 80’s telugu movies started have telangana lingo for comedy acts
and comedians and we also saw traces of such stereotypes in some places like
college theatre and all that.. There were protests and objections, but never
had a bigger and dominant voice to make a mark.. Life went on, until some
political moves, complications, societal changes got the movement more
seriousness and what it went thru is known and history now.
At
the personal level, i was influenced by the book SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL” and Third
Wave.. At the global level we witnessed too many changes and economic
revolutions; globalization had the side effect called disintegration of joint
family. People resisted and financial compulsions made everyone accept the
nuclear families, with huge struggle at the individual and societal level. So i
felt why not small states. My studies in MA sociology also allowed me the space
to think of encouraging smaller states for better focus, attention and
governance and not political reasons. But that view is nothing pertaining to
any one state or region. That opinion is very theoretical in nature.
In
conclusion i have this opinion.. Honestly we are all spectators and we have
been only spectators on many issues in this country, in the absence of secured
leadership at all levels. Bankruptcy, penury of leadership is the biggest
concern and hence anyone, anywhere and for anything we can all be taken for a
ride. Hence its our duty not to brood, or be pretentious or shed crocodile
tears on issues where we cannot do much. WHAT WE CAN SURELY DO IS ACCEPT THE
GODS DRAMA AND BE MORE TOLERANT, SHED ALL HATRED AND PAROCHIALISM OF ALL KINDS
AND TREAT HUMANS AS HUMANS AND NOT ON DIVISIONS.. we didn’t have a choice as
how we are born, where we are born and why we are born. But we do have choice
to make our living and peoples living more peaceful, meaningful and happy. So
does it matter if we are divided by boundaries, language , culture, needs? We
are one and we will be one.. The spirit is important and i am not votary of any
division nor am i critical if something has happened. I feel we can all be
peaceful however we are or else we only waste time brooding and in negativity.
At the individual level stop propagating hatred and confusion and world will be
a better place to live.
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