I am very compelled to write about how the Modi Wave (smartly
dubbed by Twitterati as TsuNaMo) swept the nation and what are the excitements
and fears that we might face with a stable government in the centre but since that
is all that you see and hear in the media these days with the editors generating
an overdose of articles that intend to emphasize the meteorical rise of a
chaiwala who is destined to be India’s Prime Minister, I would rather choose a
different subject to write on.
Are you someone who loves your identity? Someone who takes
pride of who you are and where you come from, very much like the pride that Mr
Modi shares about being an Indian Guajarati Hindu Nationalist (Well, it’s tough
to restrain myself from mentioning that name at this time ;) So bear with). I
am one of them, I love where I belong. And I believe that’s the same with most
of you as well for we are brought up in such surroundings and that is what defines
our world beyond. Now, have you ever liked any other community of people as
much as you did about yours?
I had this thought of what would I have chosen to be other
than a Tamilian, had I been given that choice and to my surprise, I had a
definite answer. A Bengali aka Bong :) (Let me start by saying, I am not
seeing any Bengali girl nor do I have any such plans ;) ). It is just something
about them that makes me so envious, is it their love for art, music, movies, literature,
conversations, food, football, durga pooja, siestas, colours, sexy sounding
language, simplicity, history or is it because I’ve already listed out so many
options as to why.
I have never been to Kolkata in my life but I had the pleasure of befriending some wonderful Bengalis over the past few years who have been very great ambassadors of what it is like to be what they are. When the whole world seems to be in a mad rush to move on in haste and catch up with the impatient world, the Bengalis are once who live in the present. They relish happiness in simple things that you can derive from the moment, not all of which can be bought by money.
It is this approach to life that has led to a great amount of
talent originate from this small state that has been the centre of power in
British India, right from the greats of Rabindarnath Tagore, Swami Vivekananda,
Netaji, Satyajit Ray, Amartya Sen to today’s Saurav Ganguly, Rituparno Gosh,
Derek O’Brien and even the Fake IPL Blogger who set the social media on fire. They
are always open for conversations over a sweet for snack, maybe that’s why Dr Sen
chose to give his book the title “The Argumentative Indian”, a clear case of
Self Reference Criterion SRC in marketing lingo. I have had them suggest me a
great deal of books to read and movies to watch which has helped me raise my
bars in terms of my taste for substance.
A happy life doesn’t necessarily mean a huge bungalow, SUVs,
7 digit bank balance. You can have all of those and still be unhappy as you
would want even more. What’s better than a good verse of Tagore’s poetry, a
window seat on the tram to Victoria Mahal, a ride on Howrah and a match between
Mohun Bagan and East Bengal! (None of which I have experienced but all of those
on my bucket list). Having said all this, how can I miss not mentioning the
Bengali women ;) Not just because they are gorgeous looking with expressive
eyes, but it is their sense of independence and the intelligence in thought and
action. (Not surprised Rahul Gandhi didn’t do well in West Bengal for they are
already empowered women long before even his granny).
Them Sens, Basus, Chakrabortys, Mukherjees, Das and Naths are
mostly living examples of what we have lost than what we have gained. We can’t
be a Bengali in this lifetime but we can very much try to live like one. So try
and enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Don’t miss out experiencing the journey
in haste to reach your destination. Live life, Bong size ;)
(NOTE: These are just my observations. In case I got anything wrong, kindly leave me a note and I’ll correct myself)
