Its been more than a month since I last wrote.....I mean...wrote on my blog that is. Cos otherwise I've been writing a lot you know.....primarily at work...but otherwise too you know, like writing down messages callers leave, making lists and other stuff.....but I digress.
So with the festive season drawing to a close and people slowly realizing they may have eaten a 'bit too many' sweets over the past few days, I thought the time was right to point out a few things I've observed about Diwali this time around. Call me a desi Ebenezer Scrooge, but I have slowly begun to grow less and less fond of Diwali with every passing year. Apart from the sweets and the three days of leave from work, I really don't think Diwali has anything else to offer. Have I gone crazy ? No. Hear me out or rather read me out and decide for yourself.
SMS
Don't tell me you don't receive tons of SMS greetings on Diwali. More often than not, people who you haven't spoken to for months or maybe years (sometimes deliberately so) suddenly start wishing and praying for your well being and prosperity. "May this festival bring you good health, prosperity and all that you desire.Have a Happy Diwali and a great new year ahead" was the most-received greeting for me this season. While its nice to know so many people are praying for your success, I have a problem with people who send the second part of the greeting i.e. 'the new year wishes' part.
Now...whats with the new year wishes huh ? I mean which calendar do you people use huh? New Years is still two months away ok ! Well ok....fine...if you are one of those who still lives by the Indian calendar (n the 21st Century (you weirdo!) then why send another New Years Greeting on 1 Jan 2012 huh !?! By that logic why don't I get a New Years Greeting for the Chinese and Parsi New Year too huh ? and not to forget the Mayan New year...well...maybe lets not get into the Mayan calendar its depressing enough. So what I'm driving at is this - kindly stick to one calendar and wish me according to that.
Now...whats with the new year wishes huh ? I mean which calendar do you people use huh? New Years is still two months away ok ! Well ok....fine...if you are one of those who still lives by the Indian calendar (n the 21st Century (you weirdo!) then why send another New Years Greeting on 1 Jan 2012 huh !?! By that logic why don't I get a New Years Greeting for the Chinese and Parsi New Year too huh ? and not to forget the Mayan New year...well...maybe lets not get into the Mayan calendar its depressing enough. So what I'm driving at is this - kindly stick to one calendar and wish me according to that.
Crackers
I just hate loud crackers. I particularly dislike the Roman candles....or to use a more desi term - 'ladis'. Even as a child I restricted my arsenal of firecrackers to anaars, chakras, torches and phooljadis. I recall my peers stocking up with much more glamorous and seemingly 'macho' products such as - phook bombs, ten thousand ladi, whistling rockets and other firecrackers of mass disturbance. I disagreed with their choice then, now and shall continue to for many Diwalis to come.
I mean here I am trying to enjoy my holiday, trying to relax within the confines of my room and watch a football match (or even better play one on FIFA 2008), when all of a sudden - BANG, there goes one of those ladis. Obviously the work of an attention-seeking idiot trying to prove to the world how easily he can wreck an honest tax-paying citizen's peace and in the bargain derive some sadistic pleasure out of it. Now, not only does this BANG make me miss the match commentary (either on TV or on my laptop) but I have to undergo the terrible inconvenience of displacing myself from my bed and spending 10 minutes of my precious holiday time in trying to calm down my dog, who has so effortlessly added to my frustration in this scenario by lending his bark to that idiot's cause. In the background I hear the commentator shout - "magnificent strike and equally magnificent save from the keeper! "
Excessive lighting
It is well known and widely accepted that we live in a hypocritical society. While on 26 March 2011 Indians were proudly switching-off their lights and even greater pride telling others that they had celebrated Earth Hour, on 26 October 2011 by putting up an assortment of lights (red, yellow, blue, green and some that go on and off at regular intervals) those very people seem to have forgotten their resolve to conserve energy.
In fact during Diwali I've seen people compete with their neighbors by attempting to outdo the other in their lighting arrangements.I believe all this is done with the objective of coaxing Laxmi (the goddess of wealth) to enter their house to shower them with riches beyond their wildest imagination. Whether making one's house appear as an airstrip increases the chances of Goddess Laxmi arriving , I wouldn't know, but what I do know is that, all that was accomplished in that one hour in March is undone 7 months later in October faster than you can say 'Shubh Deepawali'. At this juncture, it is apposite to quote one of my favorite Dickensian characters who so succinctly put it - "Bah ! Humbugs !"
In fact during Diwali I've seen people compete with their neighbors by attempting to outdo the other in their lighting arrangements.I believe all this is done with the objective of coaxing Laxmi (the goddess of wealth) to enter their house to shower them with riches beyond their wildest imagination. Whether making one's house appear as an airstrip increases the chances of Goddess Laxmi arriving , I wouldn't know, but what I do know is that, all that was accomplished in that one hour in March is undone 7 months later in October faster than you can say 'Shubh Deepawali'. At this juncture, it is apposite to quote one of my favorite Dickensian characters who so succinctly put it - "Bah ! Humbugs !"
I end by saying that I am not against Diwali, I am merely against the way it is celebrated today. Don't get me wrong I really love the three day 'chhutti' from work and the boxes of sweets, but as I said at the start of this now very large blog entry, I don't think Diwali serves any purpose beyond that.
Wait...what is it that I hear you say....that Diwali is a very important religious festival ? Yes ! Surely it is ! But I must confess that deep down I really don't feel more religious on Diwali than I do on any other day. While the pooja and the bhajan-chanting brings in the religious element to the day's proceedings, I feel closer to God only when there is peace and tranquility in my immediate surroundings.
Also how do you expect me to feel religious or spiritual with so many 'unpeaceful' activities going on huh? All those crackers bursting, my dog barking, the excessive wastage of electrical energy and the....wait.......wait.....uh-oh....I've got to go now....my mobile just rang (must be another SMS). Oh and before I leave, here's wishing you a very Happy Diwali and......um......hmmmmm...........uhhhh.......thats it actually......nothing else......I'll wish you a happy new year on 1 Jan cos I follow the English calendar. Cheerio!
