This evening I got to watch a video, by the BBC at that, in which a rather famous, sorry to have to say so, but Marathi, actor was waxing eloquent about his trip to Pahalgam, immediately after the unfortunate tragedy! The sensitive etc etc etc soul was holding forth about the need not to make the poor (as usual, in all senses of this term!) locals feel lost which they would, if tourism were to collapse right in the beginning of the season, it seems.
How very lofty, no? Well, I do not think so at all. Well, the blood spilt there might not be still washed away. If this sensitive(!!!) soul were to sensibly look around, instead of showing other equally (c)rude people 'enjoying' themselves, he would have indicated the dismal signs of that terrible tragedy, right?
What he, and others of his ilk, are doing is downright disrespectful to those who suffered such a horrid tragedy. Their wounds are still raw. Why rub salt in to their injuries by glorifying the so-called "all is well, all is well" normalcy?
Sure, the locals must not suffer due to a handful extremists. Well, sorry to have to say this, but would the terrible tragedy have taken place at all if the locals were not at all involved? The culprits were very much present at the site beforehand, busy with an ugly reiki, and so on. Very many private videos (from Pune, too) have emerged to establish the locals coordinating, cooperating with those horrid terrorists! Look at the way they heckled and ill-treated, unlike the BBC journalist, Divya Tripathi who, too, was reporting!
If, for a week, tourism were suspended as a mark of respect for the innocent dead who unnecessarily lost lives, and for the grieving, suffering survivors who have thus got a lifetime of disturbing memories, the locals, too, would have learnt a valuable lesson, right? May be, at least for financial, if not for any idealistic, reasons, the locals would have avoided any truck with the terrorists, right?
Why frolic when someone else has been very recently and absolutely grievously wounded? Even animals do not go for such cruel crudities! Many animals mourn their dead! Would the tourists enjoying there or the sensitive etc etc etc actor, and others of his ilk, have behaved the same way if their near and dear ones had fallen victims to the AK 47 bullets of the terrorists?
Why be so (c)rude, while pretending to be oh-so-kind to Kashmiri's? Or is it the case that only local Kashmiri's suffer? And the unfortunate victims of a senseless terrorist attack, what about their emotional wounds? Money matters, one's (c)rude 'enjoyment' alone cannot always have the upper hand! As it is, it has already been established, the touristy season was advanced to an earlier date, and without the necessary permissions!!
Such (c)rude arrogance gives rise to the suspicion by many that an international narrative was involved in maligning India, especially because the American Vice- President had till then enjoyed a very happy feel-good tour of India with his young family.
Yes, one must be liberal, democratic, open. For SURE! But pretensions to that effect, which are extremely unjust to the suffering of others, do smack of (c)rude hypocrisy, right?
A parallel would be so-called celebrities asking young impressionable minds to chase their dreams (which most often are acting, dancing, singing, stand-up comedy-ing) instead of following the well-meaning advice of those who genuinely care for them. Despite so very many reality shows on so very many channels, how many get a decent break, especially if they do not have a godfather or a fairy mother?!? The percentage would be truly dismal. Unhappy indeed is the society where so-called celebrities set awful agendas that are absolutely delusional!
Pratima@Yet another parallel would be the MPSC/UPSC dreams. I have taught (on a part-time basis) for three solid years in one such institute. Without a Plan B in place, young (wo)men from very poor families and rural background are led down the primrose path with absolutely tinsel tales. Indeed, why be so (c)rude?!?
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