India is behaving like a rebel teenage girl who can't and won't take criticism from anybody. What is more proof of our rising intolerance that even comments from globally loved icons like SRK, Salman Khan can get us red in the face, and sadly, not from shame. And really, do the literary laureates returning their honours affect us at all? Who cares if they are protesting against rising intolerance in India - 90% or more of us had hardly even heard about them in the first place.
Moreover, aren't we tolerating so many things already? Rising prices of onions and toor dal, the dangerous levels of pollution, the overflowing population, half of newspapers covered with advertisements, the neighbourhood aunty dumping her garbage from her balcony onto the street, not just dogs - even strange men peeing at every wall, pillar, open gutter or car tyre. Isn't our patience tested enough? God knows we have done SO much against these! Haven't we? Or have we?
Plus, we aren't as intolerant as we are made out to be. Don't we allow all the rapes happening every day - every minute? We are very tolerant of that! As long as it doesn't happen in the family. I guess, we will tolerate it even then. Who'll go through all the pain of dealing with India's judiciary system. The chosen few victims get a candle march, a peaceful gathering at India Gate (which eventually turns violent complete with lathi charge and water cannons and tear gas and the works), petitions and open letters make it to the headlines, pump our emotions and then the wave passes with time as the headlines become overshadowed by the ludicrous temptation of the latest Snapdeal mega sale!
No, we aren't THAT intolerant. Don't we tolerate the acidic fumes rising from our revered Yamuna ji? Or the floating bloated carcasses of cattle, garlands, diya, matkas, flowers and plastic and more plastic having a leisurely swim in Ganga Maiyya? In fact, not just tolerate - we even help in ensuring that these motherly rivers stay the same way - if not get worse.
Wonder what all the hullaboo is about rising intolerance...
Actually, all those who roll up their sleeves, widen their eyes and start spewing choice insults at every comment which can be remotely connected to religion, Pakistan, and now - the latest fad - beef!, are basically just bored people who are ever on the look out for something to play with. And they happen to have that special power which attracts the fourth pillar of our democracy - the know all, tell little - media.
And there is nothing bad about being short tempered, right? Even if they might just enjoy a beef jerky or a scrumptious beef burger in the quiet privacy of their homes, with their mouth still full of their respected mother - the holy cow - they will point their greasy fingers at people, outside whose little jhuggis they throw the bones of their meal.
It is indeed shameful how India is partially intolerant. How we choose to turn a blind eye to heinous crimes but don't hesitate to raise our voices against every petty issue. Are we so dimwitted that we keep hanging out our tongues and wagging our tails when we listen someone talk about 'Acche Din' and get to know details of the food prepared for dignitaries when they fulfill their childhood wish of desh duniya darshan? Can we really, a nation of 120 crores, keep silent at the hiatus created by a handful of hooligans who believe they can splatter grease/ ink, throw their show at or open the gutter of their mouth at anyone who has an opinion to share? Maybe it is time we remove the tag of democracy from India's shrinking list of adjectives.
An ashamed, highly tolerant, Indian.
