Common
Man Is Now A `Celebrity`
The
vociferous voices in the political landscape pitching for the common
man's welfare has made him the country's most sought after
`celebrity`. With the Lok Sabha elections just round the corner, he
will once again have the opportunity to stamp his authority on the
course political discourse should take.
The
events of the past few weeks have catapulted the common man to cult
status. Thanks to Arvind Kejriwal and his band of highly purpose
driven colleagues, it is no longer a disadvantage to be common, in
fact, it is quite cool to be one.
Delhi,
which has been the epicenter of various `revolutionary` activities in
the past few years, has thrown up a political alternative constructed
out of a vague sense of imagination which jostled for prominence
amidst the intense cynicism that had gripped the nation in the past
few years. The emerge of the Aam Aadmi Party is more than just a
dream come true, it is the manifestation of a collective intention of
the nation.
The
real significance of the `re-emergence` of the common man phenomena
is that this time it is for real. There is a real face which the aam
aadmi
can now look up to. This is a departure from the past so many decades
when the common man had to be content with giving vent to his
feelings through illusory mediums like cartoons and films.
In
the good old days, the two great champions of the common man in the
illusory space were RK Laxman and Amitabh Bachchan. For decades,
every morning the common man got up to look up at You Said It in The
Times Of India and laughed at his own plight, acquiring the strength
to fight the day's battle that awaited him on the roads, in public
transport and in the office. Laxman taught us to laugh at ourselves
and at the system in which we thrived, and move on with panache and
perseverance. In a way, it was a fatalistic acceptance of our
condition, but it provided a unique corridor of escape from reality,
and replaced the gloom that greeted us everyday with an ability to
take satirical potshots at our own selves.
RK Laxman's representation of the common man was subtle – he was a mute witness to events and circumstances. While the caricature stood silent, Indian homes reverberated with laughter. But Amitabh Bachchan, through his fight-for-justice characters in the 70s' and 80s' gave voice to the frustrations of the common man. Bachchan can probably be termed as the `First Larger-Than-Life Celebrity Common Man` of India.
While
Laxman provided relief through humour, Bachchan provided relief by
delivering punchy dialogues and by taking on the system as an aam
aadmi with
no intentions of getting bullied by unjust people. Bachchan's
extraordinary portrayal as an angry young man on reel of real life
issues made him a darling of the masses. The issues on the ground
however remained, as obviously both Laxman and Bachchan were merely
executing their professional duties with a conviction that resonated
deeply in the minds and hearts of the masses. Even as the years
caught on, their iconic representation of the common man ensured they
remained the prima donnas of their craft.
But
the common man today seems to have come out of the closet of a
cartoon strip and reel characters. First through Anna Hazare and now
through Arvind Kejriwal, he is resonating with an attitude that
suggests he is no longer content with `entertaining escapism`, but
wants to tackle issues head on and take responsibility for his
aspirations. The insecurity of being lost in the crowd is dissolved;
instead, he seems quite elated with the vociferous celebration of the
aam
aadmi identity
across the nation. He is elated that he has found his voice, which is
of far greater relevance for him than getting noticed in the crowd.
The common man today is fine with his or her being just another face
in the crowd, as long as there are people who project themselves in
the public space as a genuine representative of the hidden faces.
These
are very interesting times for the common man. The promise of going
strongly back to the basics with the help of `like-leaders` holds
greater romance for him today than being a recognised individual who
has to fend for himself all alone.
The
vociferous voices in the political landscape pitching for the common
man's welfare has made him the country's most sought after
`celebrity`. With the Lok Sabha elections just round the corner, he
will once again have the opportunity to stamp his authority on the
course political discourse should take.
