Gandhigiri.. Bole to...Part One

Yes, the title makes it apparent that I have witnessed the spectacle dubbed " Lage raho..Munnabhai.." and yes... I was quite impressed too.

Firstly, the movie achieves what every single flick thats ever released strives for; Keeping the audience engrossed for the entire duration of its run. It was a kind of Sachin innings where you watch it entirely for the class of batsmanship regardless for the team he plays for or the result of the match or the missed opportunities to nail him early.

Second and more importantly; it got me thinking on one of my most favorite personal conflict; Was Gandhi really a saint? The fashion in which Gandhi's ideals are propogated without sounding too preachy or makin them look extremely card-boardish is a tribute to excellent film-making. Raju Hirani, take a bow.

So what exactly is Gandhigiri... why was it so powerful... why could it manage to sway the entire world...is it relevant today...if yes, how exactly.... These are very profound queries. Several Phd's may have been awarded for researching this one human existence on this planet and still we would barely have actually scratched, even the surface...

I have always been fascinated by the perception afforded to Gandhi in history; He has always been quoted as the architect of Indian freedom movement but then progessively his stature has deteriorated to that of an oppressor of Hindus, a man responsible for partition and the aftermath of it, a man so manipulative that even all his greatest doctorines have been rendered complete wastes, a man who should have been shot much earlier and his killer being hailed as a saviour. I have seen extremes of opinion about many things ranging from ecstacy to abhoration (classic example being the performance of our cricket team) but hardly ever have i seen such tilts in opinion about a man so highly placed in public memory.

I must admit that I m no scholar on the life and works of Gandhi and the two books I have drawn reference to forming an opinion about him are his own autobiography about his experiments with truth and a book titled : " Gandhi: a sublime failure".

What follows is my opinion on the phenom that was once fondly and now forcibly called " Father of the nation"

Gandhi started his life as an ordinary guy with limited aspirations and even feebler strength to achieve those. The one and only great influence on his life was that of his very pious, religious mom and a superbly well-balanced, truth loving dad. These individuals moulded Mohandas to be an honest man if nothing else. Gandhis aspirations were to emulate Shravan ( a great son who carried his blind parents on his shoulders so that they could visit all major religious centers in their lifetime). This was his ultimate driving force and all his actions and misadventures were aimed at that goal from early on.

Neither was this boy perfect as the image that has been created suggests. Gandhi mentions the various supposed fallacies of his charcter in great detail (stealing gold, smoking, eating meat and enjoying it, etc.) The fact was these were subsided by his effort to sparkle in his parents eyes. Most of the so-called decisions to quit or give up these habits was steeped in the same. Bole to... there was a definitive goal to raise in the eyes of ones parents rather than the righteousness of the act itself that motivated Gandhi a lot.

To his credit, Gandhi always took extreme care to stand true to himself and his beliefs. This, sometimes even at the risk of knowing the potentiality of the imminent failure. This quality kinda defined him as a person. His immense belief in God, his penchant for being righteous and the value he put on following it to the core transformed him from an ordinarily good guy to a Mahatma (saint). This aspect sharpened his other angles too. How it worked wonders for India is one of the most fascinating aspects of history.

(In the second part, I would try to comment on what Gandhism truly meant and how much of it is relevant)