Ann-a-other day has gone by, but Picture abhi baaki hai!

So - I haven't been watching TV over the last few days. There is no reason to watch TV anyway. Nothing new seems to be happening. Except for Anna completed one more day of fasting. Team Anna in a deadlock with the Government. Anna Hazare is the 2nd Gandhi. His health is ok. And so on and so forth.

I haven't attempted reading news papers either. Whats the point. XYZ people formed human chains. ABC are fasting along with Anna. Lakhs of people hit the streets to be a part of this new revolution. Young and old join hands in unity to create history.

So in a nut shell, Anna is the 2nd Gandhi and the entire country is supporting him in order to feel like they are a part of something larger than life. So what really is going on in India? A patriotic Bollywood movie with all its masala. And to spice up the masala, throw in a Baba Ramdev as well - its almost a complete entertainer. And maybe that is what it is after all.

All of India's middle class is apparently out on streets in support of Anna Hazare. And I really commend the man for being able to garner the support that he has. I really salute the man for having been able to stir an otherwise indifferent lazy nation. But it also gives me cause for concern. The middle class that is supporting him, is it really "supporting" him or is this just another vent for their frustration that they face in their daily lives? Like in the movie 'A Wednesday', the frustrated common man had taken to an extreme step to vent his frustration, isn't this looking like a similar movie, albeit a non violent one?

Is the Indian Middle Class today willing to eradicate corruption from the root level? Sure we would all be happier if we did not have to bribe the useless babus, cops etc etc. But do we wonder why they have gotten used to taking bribes in the first place? What is corruption and to what level is it prevalent, have we stopped to wonder?

Incident: A friend of mine has his BBM updates around Anna. "I support Anna Hazare". "I too want a corruption free India". "Anna Hazare, we are with you". The other day he and I were going to somewhere and he wanted to enter the club from the back gate. We pointed out that its not allowed. His response "Arrey I'll just give the guard 50 bucks and he will let us enter"!!!!! Now this is a good friend of mine so I am not passing any judgement but all Im saying is that there really seems to be no merit to this 'andolan'. The common man supporting this cause does NOT understand the damn cause. On argument with my friend he said, "chota mota corruption chalta hai. We need to fight it at the top level'. I am sorry but I don't get it. If we are corrupt at our level, woh chalta hai?

And in his words was possibly the voice of all those lakhs of people who are out on the streets supporting Anna Hazare. I get a feeling, we all want a clean system without wanting to change our own ways. Thats chicken and egg situation, is it not?

Another friend argued with me, "The system needs to change if corruption needs to end". What system are be talking about? A system that is comprised of people. And as long as there are people in a position of power, there is bound to be "temptation" to give in to easier ways of life. So eradicating corruption is like saying we want to fight with one of the 7 sins that are intrinsic to human psyche. Who is to say that the committees that will be set up for the Lokpal Bill over years will not give in to this human psyche. It took a Spider Man to live his life based on "With great power comes great responsibility". In today's world, "with great power comes great opportunity to misuse it", isn't it?

People say that for the time being, a shake up was required to bring this rotting topic of corruption to focus. Great that it has been. What next? The Jan Lokpal Bill has many a loop holes and honestly, I am sick and tired of committees and panels and bills and more people being given power to govern me, administer me, watch me all the damn time. I do not choose to have more people in power and thus be given to the temptation.

Having said all of the above and not being a part of this mass-ive movement and almost being cynical to all of this (rare for me to not be moved by the goings on of my country), I must admit I am humbled by the man Anna Hazare. There must be something in him that wasn't there in Irom Sharmila that has managed to get him the mass support and not her. There must be something about this man that has attracted the common man and the non to common man (aka Rajnikanth, Lata Mangeshkar, Om Puri and the likes) to extend their support to him.

I wonder and then I wonder why my heart is not into this. I don't have answers, just speculations. Speculations that oscillate from wondering why a noble man would call himself 2nd Gandhi to why is Team Anna allowing the likes of Baba Ramdev to bask in the limelight, to wondering why the insistence to "pass" the bill as opposed to "lets talk about it" and to wondering whether this is blackmail or not. And as I wonder, I come across this (the link below).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4zRHEw21h8&feature=share

It could be a government conspiracy to malign this noble man or it could be the truth behind the scenes. I do not think the man's credibility ought to be doubted but at the same time, when its a movie, a Bollywood one at that, who is to say what is truth and what is far from truth?

Maybe he is real or maybe he is a damn good marketing campaign that has caught the fancy of the nation. Time will tell and we all will wait and watch.