When the not so tough get going

When the not so tough get going

My apologies first!

I am no authority on Bharatiya (Indian) sanskriti (culture), behavioural patterns, customs or habits. But my purely personal observations have brought one very comforting fact to the fore- we Indians can do anything, will do anything if the right kind of motivation is there. Our inherent sense of duty, commitment and fortitude shines bright in times of need. In stability our inertia is like a solid rock but yet when kicked out of our comfort zone by circumstances, we run like a hare.

India, as reported, has so far had low Covid infection and death rate. Immunity, hot weather, demographics, right steps early or something else, any of these may or may not have contributed to this, who knows. But one thing is certain that the lockdown that followed has been a largely contributing factor to this. It is because the people have followed it with the right spirit. For that maybe we should pat our own backs and go about our new-formed routines in isolation and shelter in place so that the threat of spike is erased. And yes please, with a software engineer in every nukkad (corner), maybe create an Indian equivalent of the Chinese Tik Tok soon.

Is it only Covid that we are scared of? No, many an epidemic has come and gone, be it bird flu, cow flu, swine flu, small pox, polio or natural disasters like famines, floods, tsunami that have marked our history. Almost every year we have witnessed loss of lives and property in some part of the country or the other. But never before has the Indian resolve been stronger to fight it together as it is now. The reason- the sense of purpose which the Covid attack has granted them.

Fight the virus- People have closeted themselves in their houses. They have gone without education, office politics, haircuts, beauty treatments, movies in multiplexes and shopping. They have foregone simple pleasures like dressing up, eating out, gossip at the tea kiosk, rendezvous with friends, idling on roadsides and long drives to weaken the enemy.

Do not venture out- Social distancing is the magic word this season. Even when the government has now allowed outside activities for certain periods of time and in certain areas, so has been the conditioning of my countrymen for six weeks, that for the sake of everyone’s safety, most of them do not go out. They continue to carry out office work with minimal staff and larger meetings on Zoom. Even industries and manufacturing units are trying to push their losses to the unknown horizon and pay the workers.

Spend time with family- The surge of Tik Tok videos are ample proof that people have swept and mopped their houses, cooked, learned to bake, danced, exercised and watched TV together. Thousands have trudged home to be with their families. So great is this feeling that the  bosses who would not allow an hour’s leave six weeks ago, are now begging the employees to stay at home. People from all worker categories are still in a state of shock that their wish to have more time with their loved ones has oddly been fulfilled by a virus.

Help the needy- People are giving food and provisions to the stranded, the poor, domestic and factory workers, strangers from whom they have no expectations of getting it back. They have expressed their views left, right and centre on what should or should not be done about the students/migrant labourers/farmers, besides health, agriculture, industry, economy, finance sectors in case the government with hundreds of qualified thinking minds on its payroll, needs to know.

Stay connected – The networking in the lockdown period has been impressive. People have bombarded family, friends and relatives long gone quiet, with video calls. There is so much traffic on social media that I wonder if the deluge of matter in the cloud storage is causing this strange weather with lightning and thunder in May.

Fight Corona : This is being done by all whose faces look even vaguely familiar to any section of the population. They talk, sing and dance to carry their message forward on every TV channel that you try to escape to. And in return Bharatwasis (Indians) have showered love with light and sound shows on these Covid-warriors doing their duty for the health and safety of the countrymen.

(I don't understand where they got the firecrackers from during Lockdown)

Support the government –With heavy hearts the central and state governments slowly shared the concern that their coffers were fast going empty. And the gushing true Indian spirit was amply evident at the liquor stores. At the risk of confronting the unseen virus, hundreds stood in line, even jostled and bore the brunt of the hot summer sun to buy the elixir to replenish the deposits. Men and women, poor or rich, urban or rural, they rose above these divisive sociological classifications and voluntarily parted with their hard earned cash reserves for the greater good. Their duty done, these unknown soldiers bearing the weight of these bottles of potions, went back to their lives of anonymity, ready to surface when the need arises again.

Adventurous souls - There is always someone in the crowd with the hat ke (not common) thinking. No, this small number of lockdown violators cannot be ignored. What they are doing is an act of social service. Risking their hide, they are testing the efficiency of the system. They are the newsmakers, giving food to the news channels to fill their show time as also provide some comic relief from Covid –related scary facts to the viewers so that we can appreciate their sense of adventure. Unfortunately, the tribe in khaki, so very eager to exercise their bodies by wielding sticks and directing humans to mutate into murgas (chicken), is on the prowl for these brave souls.

The whole reaction to the virus attack gives succor to my troubled mind and courage to continue with my majorly unheard of existence. I am relieved to know that we Indians are great achievers. As goes the cliché, we rise to the occasion. We will take off, straightaway reaching Mars where nobody else has landed so far, if a fire-spitting rocket is set alight in our backsides.  

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