The Sting of the Peak of Success!

"I wait for the moment when the Kolkatta Knight Riders win the IPL and i carry the IPL trophy back to Kolkatta on a barge and say to all our detractors- SUCK ON THIS!"
-Shah Rukh Khan (IPL team owner) saying at the beginning of the tournament.

"Our clothes are the best, Our marketing is best, Our song is the best, Our cheer leaders are the best, we just need to play well, which we will"

- Shah Rukh Khan has been saying this since his teams poor performance last year.

I cant help but think of the saying- "It is better to stay quiet and let people guess whether you are an idiot or not rather than opening your mouth and confirming that you are one!"

I have been amused by the manner in which my once favorite Shah Rukh Khan has been conducting himself lately...Although not star struck what fuels my curiosity is the phenomenon of a mortal beings (in) capacity of handling stupendous success and his limitations that cause his downfall.

It seems he has lost all his innocence and candid humour which is replaced by a pompousness and vengeance-filled sarcasm.

In the last two films that he produced he played a "Super Success full Superstar"...that speaks for creativity and humility!

He claims of being the Biggest Brand of India although he has lately been shown the door by Pepsi and has been signed on to promote Coca Cola's supplementary product- Sprite! Coca Cola's main brand ambassador is Amir Khan!

A few evenings ago i was narrated this anecdote-

A journalist visited the bungalow of a Hindi film Industry super star in the mid 70's for an interview. While the journo waited- in the large living room overlooking the plush green lawns- for the star to arrive he saw an old man thoughtfully sitting in a large arm chair...looking out at the plush lawns and pondering.

The journalist identified the old man as the superstars father and more so a literary giant himself. The journo politely wished the old man and asked him how he felt about the stupendous success that his son had achieved. The old man turned around...looked into the eyes of the journo and told him with utmost poise and serenity that all was well until it was; however what he feared was "the sting of- the peak of success!"...in his words- "Shikhar ki Dank" and hoped his son would cope with it.
While his son had his share of struggle with the sting of success, it is far to obvious to see SRK fighting to save himself from being stung by the same!!

I'm sure he is aware of the sting and the damage it can cause...i just hope he stays conscious of it at all times.

I still have a soft corner for him and hope he see's the true picture through the layers of false admiration and and insincere well wishers that surround him.

At present though the the fangs of success have been spread and SRK is standing far too unprotected to save himself from the sting!

Encourage People to vote, Don't force them.

There was no reason for the voting turnout to be low this time around. Amidst super publicity and the media blitzkrieg the election bugle was blowing loud and clear.
“Jaago Re” was the war cry of the city along with mood building anthems like “Dot hai toh Hot hai” and “Ungli utha vote kar”.
It was proved time and again that the poor always vote, it is only the rich and the young that stay away, thus voting was being built up like a brand and the social responsibility was garnished and served as a “cool” and “in” thing to do this summer. The ink stain on your finger was almost equivalent to a tattoo and fighting the heat and queues at the election booth was like making a statement.
Add to that the reaction after the terror attacks on 26/11 and it seemed this election was going to see the city truly wake up and make its presence felt but alas…
This Election Day saw the lowest voting turnout the city has ever seen!!! Can you believe it?
Now the popular reaction is to make voting compulsory!! This is difficult for me to fathom!
How can all the advocates of democracy –the process of making a choice- insist on making something mandatory?
What irks me here is the involvement of certain forces with vested interests that mislead the youth’s energy and enthusiasm and sadly the youth too drifting along their directed paths.
Let us not lose focus here…it is true that people should have voted and it is unfortunate that they did not however forcing them to vote is not going to be the right step instead the approach can be more patient and judicious. Like-
Curbing their right to complain- If you have not voted you cannot crib or complain against any facility or service.
Perks for those who voted- Since you have voted you get free parking for ‘x’ days or ‘x’ places! (Please note- I have voted and my car number is…)
None of the above on ECM’s- Urge the government to provide the “None of the above” option on ECM’s. A lot of centers were unaware of the form 49-o which provides the voter an option to abstain from voting.
All in all my intention is to let all those who have felt hurt by the low turnout know that all is not lost yet and since we have initiated a process of change let us not get disheartened or angry so quickly, rather it is important to stay patient and persistent till the change occurs.