Despite the bad reviews and bad word of mouth, I went to watch Delhi-6 over the weekend. I loved the film. I was the only one in the group of 4 who actually liked the film and was chatting about it even after reaching home.
People, rather understanding the whole point or say all the points from the movie, just stuck on the whole Monkey Man episode and got irritated.
I am no official reviewer of Bollywood nor I find this place proper to chitchat about movies, but would love to point out the biggest strength of India which lies in its people.
Their Unity.
India never was, is and will be about individuality. It is all about the force which keeps people together. Call it family ties, social ties, commitments and devotion.
India, in the principle idea, is always about masses, the multiplicity and a multicultural, multilingual rainbow.
We love to see many people around all the day long. In buses, trains, offices, streets and even in the movies. Imagine a Indian movie dance number without unnecessary backup dancers!
Happiness grows when shared.
BUT is this togetherness always leads to any social good?
I doubt.
Sometimes it translates into mass hysteria.
Hard to control and unbelievably insane. People do things just because everyone else is doing the same. be it beating of a roadside Romeo or pick pocket, vandalizing public property, cricketing loss disappointments, death of a popular film star, communal riots or the whole Monkey Man episode of Delhi-6.
Whoever crosses the dictates of the mass comes under the hammer and feels the heat.
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A personal experience to elaborate the whole point
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There was a old tree in front of my childhood home in a small town in central India. One day someone sighted a snake under it and devotionally colored the stones beneath the tree in saffron. The tree died and the whole neighborhood decided to build a temple at the place where the saffron stones were placed.
First thing they did is to chop off one of the trees I planted on the same ground. The excuse was there they will have the front gate of the temple. Even people came to my house asking for money in return of the labor they did to cut that tree. They cut the tree when my whole family was out to summer vacations.
Money pooled from the colony, but it was insufficient to build a temple.
So they just prepared the basic structure of the temple which was without walls and plaster. It was just four pillars of concrete with a roof.
6 years went by.
One day on his death bed, one wise man decided to donate Rs.5,000/- to the community temple which was originally a Lord Shiva Temple, but now positioned as Lord Krishna's future home.
SO, in hopes to raise more money from the whole town, the colony people went ahead and made the city goon the caretaker of the future temple. This fellow, with more than a dozen cases filed against him in the police records, came to the colony of teachers and raised money from all over the city to finish the whole thing.
After almost 10 years since my dear tree was chopped off, there was a main gate of the temple, encroaching 2 feet on the street, without leaving any parking space for the devotees who are going to visit the temple. Also in addition, covered two more trees in the campus which gave them additional 5 feet encroachment on the street. So there was no space left in front of my house. A big branch of the 18-year-old Neem tree, which was also planted by me, was chopped of as it was coming in the ways of long view across the street for the temple.
My family told me not to utter a word against them as they are the people with whom we lived for almost 20 years.
Then they got speaker systems, which went loud every morning, evening, festival days and special occasions.
We shifted to another house.
The reason: I protested to the priest that I am sleeping at 6 AM on a holiday; your loud speaker disturbs me. Please turn it off. He got the goon of the city to threaten my life.
Reason given by the neighbors of 20 years: 6 AM is too late to sleep. Name one resident of the neighborhood who has any problems with these arrangements apart from you.
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Now I heard that there was another brawl among the committee member, who lives in the neighborhood upon the usage of the loudspeakers. 3 teenage couples eloped after a musy affair which took place in the temple. 2 Kids failed examination as they were busy serving the temple full time.
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I miss my childhood home.
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It is up for sale.
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