Common Man Is Now A `Celebrity`

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.