BANGALORE - Dismissed for decades by
successive post-independence generations of
Indians as a boring old man whose teachings are
irrelevant to modern times, Mahatma Gandhi - the
leader of India's freedom struggle against British
colonialism - has suddenly emerged as a youth
icon.
A runaway Bollywood hit Lage raho
Munnabhai ("Carry on Munnabhai") has triggered
among young Indians new interest in
Gandhi. The "Father of the
Nation" has gone pop.
Lage raho
Munnabhai is about Munnabhai, a small-time
crook in Mumbai who tries to win the heart of a
radio talk-show host by pretending to be an expert
on Gandhi. He gets absorbed with faking expertise
on Gandhi, and Gandhi's spirit soon appears to
him, advising him to adopt Gandhigiri (or
living life by Gandhi's principles such as truth
and non-violence) as opposed to the
dadagiri (a life of bullying and threats)
that he is used to.
Gandhi's teachings of
truth and non-violent resistance form the theme of
the film, but it does not preach. It is a comedy
with Gandhi speaking in a language that youngsters
identify with. Lage raho Munnabhai has made
Gandhi accessible to Indian youth. Ironically, it
took a crook called Munnabhai and his sidekick to
bring public focus back on Gandhi's long-forgotten
ideals.
For decades, Indians were taught
Gandhian principles through tedious textbooks and
boring documentaries. Gandhi was put on a pedestal
and revered as a saint. Visits to damp and dreary
Gandhi museums were mind-numbing. Gandhi's
relevance to Indians was that every city has a
road named after him, currency notes bear his
picture, and his birth anniversary is a public
holiday. To many Indians, Gandhi was that old man
who advocated self-denial and abstinence from the
fun things of life.
Lage raho
Munnabhai appears to have changed that.
Commenting on the movie's role in reworking Gandhi
as a contemporary, eminent sociologist Shiv
Vishvanathan observed, "From distant myth, he
[Gandhi] is now part of modern folklore
re-engineered in a new role as agony aunt and
management consultant. He appears practical,
effective, gentle and professional. He is not
mystical, religious or political. This new Gandhi
is a pragmatic, 'art of life' man."
Outlook magazine points out that Lage
raho Munnabhai "marks the magnificent,
fun-filled return of Gandhi to mass
consciousness".
Indeed, it has made Gandhi
"hip", and such principles as Satyagraha (path of
truth) and ahimsa (non-violence) that he
espoused seem "cool". Gandhi is in fashion.
Youngsters sport his teachings on T-shirts, Gandhi
websites and fan clubs have multiplied, students
are participating in quizzes, and debates about
Gandhian principles and teenagers are putting
those principles into practice. They are
volunteering to work in villages and slums.
Drawing attention to the importance of
using symbols and language that youth can relate
to, Annamalai, a member of one of the scores of
Gandhi youth organizations that have sprouted
across India, said: "Young people may not be able
to relate to a dhoti-clad Gandhi. But tell
them how he was a millionaire London-returned
barrister who threw away everything to fight for
justice and equality, and they begin at once to
appreciate him."
This new approach is
working. The new Gandhian youth movement has
spread across 10 of India's 28 states, with
volunteers involved in such issues as communal
harmony and land rights of dispossessed tribals.
While students form the bulk of the volunteers,
there are many young professionals too.
The heightened interest in Gandhi comes
even as India commemorates 100 years of
Satyagraha, the path of truth and non-violence as
means of resistance. On September 11, 1906,
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, then a barrister
(lawyer) in South Africa, called on a gathering of
3,000 Indians in the Empire Theater building in
Johannesburg to pledge to resist their white
colonial oppressors without striking a single
blow. The call for peaceful resistance was
developed into Satyagraha, which was subsequently
successful in ending British colonialism in India.
Even as the government is busy setting up
committees to figure out how the centenary of
Satyagraha should be commemorated in the coming
months, the new young Gandhians are determined to
wrest the concept out of the hands of the
political establishment.
For decades,
ordinary Indians watched quietly while politicians
claiming to be Gandhians twisted his teachings out
of shape. The Gandhi youth organizations are
determined not to allow the political
establishment to reduce the Satyagraha centenary
to a farce. They have launched initiatives to make
Gandhi accessible to youth.
The interest
in Gandhi doesn't mean youngsters are accepting
Satyagraha's relevance without questioning its
efficacy in today's world. They are questioning
whether Gandhian teachings would work with an
Osama bin Laden or a George W Bush. Would a
terrorist be moved by the moral appeal of
ahimsa to give up his AK-47, or would
passive resistance if adopted by Iraqis end US
occupation of their country? They don't have the
answers, but they are willing to explore the idea
at least.
Many young Indians - their new
interest in Gandhi notwithstanding - are still a
long way from adopting Gandhian principles in
their way of life. After all, this is a generation
that is preoccupied with making money and with
materialism - not quite the attitude for adoption
of a life of self-sacrifice that Gandhian
teachings demand. And this is an India that in its
obsession with acquiring great-power status has
moved away from several ideals that once formed
the bedrock of its foreign policy.
This
year another Bollywood movie, Rang de
Basanti, caught popular imagination and
stirred youth activism in the country. Parallels
are now being drawn between Rang de Basanti
and Lage raho Munnabhai. The first draws
inspiration from another hero of India's freedom
movement - Bhagat Singh.
But while Rang
de Basanti calls for change through rebellion,
Lage raho Munnabhai advocates this through
peaceful resistance; the former deals with
systemic change, the latter with change within the
individual. Rang de Basanti sparked
candlelight vigils and protest marches that
focused public attention on the need for judicial
reform.
Lage raho Munnabhai has
renewed interest in a forgotten "Father of the
Nation". But will the Mahatma mania sweeping
across urban India today go beyond providing
Gandhi with a makeover? India's political
establishment appropriated Gandhi for decades,
denying the common man access to him.
There are other sections - business for
one - that are waiting to appropriate him now.
They are already reaping profits from the
merchandising of Brand Gandhi. Will the new
Gandhians use Satyagraha to resist this takeover?
Sudha Ramachandran is an
independent journalist/researcher based in
Bangalore.
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