I am walking down the road, like always I seem to gather a lot of stray dogs around me..they and me..we are usually always in a very happy space..we belong to nowhere and probably to know one..or who knows? My eyes fell on a particular dog, it wanted to cross the road. Like any other busy Indian road, full of chaos, men, women, animals, pollution, we have it all. I saw in relaxed ease with a smile on my lips as the dog squeezed in between some cars, found its ways between some bikes, and finally emerged on the other side of the road with a victorious smile and immediately started off to fight yet another battle of squeezing in somewhere, somehow..strangely it reminded me of the middle class. Forever trying to squeeze into that which is always just a bit beyond us..when I was young and wanted a radio of my own, I couldn't buy it with my own pocket money..just that little bit out of reach..as I grew older, nothing much changed..things are always that little bit out of reach..perhaps in some ways it's for the better..that's why the middle class is like the color brown..we fit in everywhere...and into everything..the only pitfall..everything is so damm precious for us because it all comes at a very high cost..status, jobs, money, etc etc..and that is also why we can never experiment..never give it up..just for a lark...In that I envy the pooor..especially the poor & not the rich..the rich have it all..there's no scope left there to imagine..the poor have their imagination..& they are free birds to take it where they will.
There's a strange power to the poor man who can wear his scarf with much more panache than that of someone on the red carpet..because it's not regimented and he doesn't care a hoot..that's style that's attitude..something every fashionista kills for. The middle class on the other hand is very reminiscent of the 'Safari suit' & the 'Indian nightie' that you'll see ladies make into everything but a night dress. The safari suit and the 'nightie'are probably two dresses that have been totally re-defined by Indians...in a Safari suit, you are like a yo yo ball..be whatever you want whenever, however..your basic aim is to fit in, much like the tie of a Medical rep..there's no morning -evening to it.
In my mind's eye, we are all wearing that Safari suit and trying very hard to make it look like a tuxedo.
( Image courtesy Google)
5 comments:
Reading your post I was reminded of what a famous South Indian movie star said once and it sounded quite refreshingly good offscreen. He said, "What if I drive a BMW or an Ambassador?! all that matters is if it takes me from point A to point B safely." Nice writing... enjoyed reading.
VST
Nice, very nice....your posts are always worth reading, always add value to the coffee break:)
Superbly written. Excellent analogies to bring out the famous middle class dilemma and the ever-increasing urge to blend in. A very simple but powerful article. :)
And as always.. I am a huge fan of your writing which is simply mind-blowing. :)
Thank you Raj :) VST & Satish am so glad you could relate to this.
I often travel between the two worlds of affluence and poverty. I have always felt the heart lying in the latter world.
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