Happy Birthday India

History books of the future had a busy last year and there seems to be no end to this True Man show. Paradoxically, the month of August in this country at one end holds some of the most festive moments for us Indians to celebrate, when we assume the only unifying identity we've inherited proudly through 3-4 generations and yet at the same time harbors the most pensive ones too. One can even go as far to personify this contradiction with typical birthday musings you and I have every year. The only difference might be the points of reference. While most of us try to recollect our last resolutions if any, India occupies itself with the yearly appraisal exercise put up against the objectives set on the natal day. They say present presages the future. So what's present? or more specifically what's that one thing that floods your mind when you think of India. I, for one, keep seeing a figure that's selectively progressive and further paced down by muddy waters of corruption; not that the latter doesn't have any role in the 'selective' part. But accompanying this figure lately is a man wearing a Nehruvian hat and somewhat a similar passion for change who insists on following a different course. Naturally, skepticism spreads around, followed by resultant brinkmanship and now everything stands paused. So either the nature would take its toll or a position in the grey area but meanwhile...

All the world's a stage ergo one should watch what comes out.

Our evolutionary instincts enjoy chieftainship or popular support and we perform in obligation when sight an audience. But we seldom prepare or care for what we end up presenting. Here's what got stuck to my head from the last few days ...

• Sibal laughs off a referendum in his own constituency thank-mocking Team Anna for sparing him 10% i.e. in the favor of this government.

• Chidambaram pleads ignorance in his latest press conference suggesting an independent decision by Delhi police to make a preventive arrest under section 151.

• Mr. Tewari, supposedly the chief spokesperson of INC, hurls poorly measured accusations against the Gandhian and gets away with it.

• Team Anna activist and a practicing lawyer Mr. Bhushan while defending the Jan Lokpal version against concerns for constitutional integrity on NDTV today chose to lighten up his position by juxtaposing an impertinent hypothetical situation where a movement calls for selective cleansing based on religious beliefs and terming that to be something that qualifies for a valid threat as opposed to what he and his team are asking for.

• Reputed ex-IPS Ms Bedi, at a press conference just after the last meeting of the Standing Committee, clearly not pleased with the Govt's version thought it'd be more communicative to the waggish laymen if she conveys her disregard with a rather distasteful imitation of PM Manmohan Singh's relatively soft manner of speech.

So far I'm not exactly gung-ho about taking sides on this dissent but if asked peremptorily to fill in the blank, I root for you Anna. You've certainly got a lot of us introspective while sitting in our work spaces. Shamefully, though published online I've not read your draft firsthand yet. I guess I trust your intents and I guess they are more important to me than the methods you choose...