Memoir of an optimist : Part 1

Politics isn't the last resort of a scoundrel . There is huge responsibility , pride and a respect which no other profession can claim . You may have ample thoughts and revolutionary ideas . Unless you have the implementation power , it will remain crude sometimes forever . I still remember the earliest exposure as an 8 year old I had , to politics . It was an election summer . There we gypsies and Ambassadors harbouring huge sound systems vrooming across the city roads and roaring the manifestoes and the motto of the parties . Usually there used to be a movie song whose lyrics were manipulated to suit the respective ideologies . The possible logic behind such a move could be : The party parodying the hottest song on chart would garner more votes . There were large processions into our colony in Kowdiar by both the major fronts contesting in the ballot and with the respective candidate leading the pack in the door-to-door campaign. There were promises of advancement , welfare schemes and panacea of all prevailing miseries . I used to stare at them with puppy dog eyes and the leader appeared to be rising to an unprecendented height . That was the day it all began : Be a politician . One who commands respect with a word . One who salvages the country . Images of a heroic white "khadar" wearing men were one of my most frequent dreams . (Interestingly more than the number of times Madhuri Dixit came to my sub-conscious)

On the decisive day , we had our parents and grandparents swarm into the nearest booths to cast a vote (A power which hardly anybody will put to the right use) . But the ones back home , the preteen young guns ,wait in anticipation for the crucial numbers . A week passes without clamour when suddenly you wake up to the noiseof crackers ! Wait , Diwali is a few months away and Vishu is long gone (As it is a popular tradition to burst crackers in Kerala during Vishu. The irony is , to watch the hard-earned money on a Vishu day go up in flames :D ) . Blowing the heat of my steaming Bourne Vita , I hear the reporter declare the result of the ballot in full glory . I recogonize the frequently flashing face on screen as the one who left a deep impact standing at my doorstep . Moments later , there was an open van progressing slowly on the road ,holding out the victor . He waved all around, thanking the electorate for their mass support . This time he neither rocked me nor stared at me with his penetrating and influential eyes . He was too busy squirming in his success least bothered of the young mind he had ignited .

Years have passed . I have seen politicians come and go . I have seen them write thought-provoking columns in dailies . I have seen them erupt into a battle of words in News Channels . But the greatest quality which I noticed they possess is the will power and composed attitude during a debate . They seem to have a tryst with articulation. Its as easy as gulping a glass of water . They make it look so easy. From Martin Luther King to Narendra Modi to Shashi Tharoor , oration is an art for which these men are truly masters ! At least untill sometime ago , I used to wonder if oratory skills are a requisite for good leadership . Reflecting closely on some of the most revolutionary speeches , it has been proved beyond doubt that , it is necessary . I envy them , the politicians . They taught me a very important lesson : It doesn't matter what you say , but how you say . Let it be false promises or about facts which you have the least idea about , standing up for what you say will earn far more patronage than a blunt and spineless delivery .

While counselling the upcoming generations , I believe politics should be described as a viable choice to the future. Rather than highlighting the flaws in the existing system , they should be taught of what a good polician can do . He should be an extrovert . A politician can easily find his ways into the books , in two ways : for noble causes like Nelson Mandela for combating apartheid OR for all the wrong reasons like "A King" who looted "lakh crores" from the common man's wallet ! So its basically preceiving . If we want , we really can mould solid artefacts . Somebody needs to take the initiative . Ask me the best time ? Its now . You may be thrashed and scrutinized for misleading your brothers , but it wouldn't be long before their y impulses realize the fact of the matter .

Hitherto , we have looked at our representatives with sheer contempt . It gets funnier when I meet people with no say or idea about the system , victimize the political community as misdoers and harbringers of all problems . Like the infatuated 8 year old , I still firmly believe politics in no way is an inferior profession . Let us clutch to the hopes of witnessing a stirred responsible group of young energetic men leading the nation from the front leaving behind all prejudices , preconceptions . . .