Me, Marathi / Stunning Article by Shobha De / Raj Thakre and Maharashtra Crisis

Correct me if I am wrong, Raj... but I consider myself an assal Marathi manoos. Born in Maharashtra to Maharashtrian parents etc. Proud to be Marathi (even though my language skills in my mother tongue are embarrassingly dodgy). I don't know how to make the perfect puran poli but I do love aamti..

This is clearly not enough anymore. Going by the checklist, I could be disqualified on several scores. I am married to a Bong, who has lived and worked in Mumbai for over 30 years (but alas, has not been appointed ambassador to the state of West Bengal yet!). He attends Durga Puja regularly and prefers maacher jhol to vangi bhaat.

Fortunately, we don't have a daughter-in-law to name a college after, either in Kolkata or Mumbai.... And our children (like yours) did not attend Marathi-medium schools.. We employ people based on their competence, not caste or region. And I have never asked the vegetable vendor, breadwalla, taxi driver, dhobi, sweeper, elevator attendant, security guard, pizza delivery boy or any of the other people who
make my life easier, which part of India they come from.

This is Mumbai, meri jaan! Who cares where anyone comes from? Dhanda is all that matters.. Mumbai is India 's most powerful magnet. Once you get here, you never leave. Don't believe me? Ask those innocent bhajjiwallas and doodhwallas who were beaten up and stoned by your men last week. Even with blood-soaked bandages around their heads, and broken hearts, they are staying put. As they should.

Aaah, the natak of your dramatised 'arrest' was not lost on anybody. Had Rakhi Sawant's slapping stunt not grabbed those eyeballs on Valentine's Day, viewers would still be stuck with the image of anattily dressed you (mmmm...loved the styling), clambering in and out of the police van. If Rakhi cleverly stage-managed the incident, what should one say about your brilliant coup? Overnight, Raj Thackeray
was elevated from being the discarded Thackeray to a national figure. In one well-orchestrated move, you went from being a neglected nephew of an ageing tiger, to a sharp-clawed, teeth-baring cub with an independent act of his own. The circus acquired a brand new star attraction - you!

It was never easy being a Thackeray. Ask Balasaheb. If he targeted south Indians in the '60s, you smartly headed north. Same agenda, diametrically different directions. By questioning the bona fides of those who have made Maharashtra their home, both of you tapped into the vulnerabilities of the average Marathi manoos. It is worth asking
the very people whose interests you are protecting, whether they really want to do the dirty work currently being handled by the northies.

Will the Marathi manoos agree to put in 18 hours a day plying taxis, selling veggies, washing clothes and so on? Who's stopping them from turning into vendors of milk, food grains, and other commodities? Perhaps, the Marathi manoos considers such occupations demeaning? The truth is, these jobs have always gone abegging, and there have been any number of hungry, unemployed people from other states ready and
willing to grab them. Kick the 'outsiders' out at your own peril, and see what happens...

Why do farmers commit suicide in such numbers only in Maharashtra ? The answer, dear Raj, may surprise you. In your defence, let me say you received the worst press - biased at best, and shrill to boot. Most of the semi-hysterical reporters from prestigious news channels were embarrassingly ill-informed as they blabbered incoherently each time a leaf moved outside the magistrate's court!

Surely, you are not complaining? Everything seems to be going according to the master plan. You have 'made it' in one swift move. And women are finding you kinda cute in that sleeveless baby blue pullover. Great copy, great photo ops. What more does a neta want? To keep Mayawati and Lalu out of Maharashtra ? Now, that's a tall order!

Author : Shobha De

In Contrast Also Read : Raj Thakre, Is he Really a Culprit ?

Disclaimer : This article is not written by us, its just referenced from a News Paper article by Shobha De. Please contact Shobha De if you feel offended. Its just a view point and in no case proactive... In contrast we have also posted an article on Raj Thakre's Good Gesture

Also Read : Shobha De with the Devils Advocate Karan Thapar Show

What’s wrong with Mumbai? A city known for its cosmopolitan culture has become a victim of parochial, divisive identity politics. Is Raj Thackeray right in his violent objections to having ‘outsiders’ take up jobs and make a living in the city? Should it be compulsory to have an understanding of Marathi to live in Mumbai?

Author and editor Shobhaa De fields these questions on Devil’s Advocate and is clear about one thing – while what Raj Thackeray stands for isn’t wrong, it’s how he says it is a problem too politically-incorrect for comfort.

Karan Thapar: Hello and welcome to Devil’s Advocate. After a week of violence and mass arrest, everyone’s asking a crucial question: What’s happened to Mumbai? That’s the issue I should raise with renowned author and editor Shobhaa De.

Shobhaa, millions and millions of Indians symbolise the cosmopolitan, broad-mindedness, the excellence and success of Mumbai. And yet today the city seems associated with Raj Thackeray’s attacks on Biharis because he thinks they are outsiders; with Bachchans because they speak Hindi; with shopkeepers because their signboards are not in Marathi – How do you respond to this?

Shobhaa De: With enormous sadness but also with a great amount of introspection. Because what’s happening in Mumbai is, in a great way, symbolic of change within the city and in the psyche of the people. Being a Maharashtrian myself, it’s distressing to see what the general audience – internationally and locally – make of this. I think we haven’t analysed enough as to why this is happening and why Raj is being portrayed as the monster.

Karan Thapar: I want to come to the analyses but let’s talk about Bombay itself – or Mumbai as it should be called. Today, when people come from outside Maharashtra to live in Mumbai, do they have as much a claim on the city as Maharashtrians or is it Maharashtrians first and everyone afterwards?

Shobhaa De: In fact it’s quite to the contrary – it’s Maharashtrians’ last and everyone else’s first. I don’t blame the ‘everybody else’ and I don’t look at them as outsiders. I think Maharashtrians need to do a great deal of inward thinking and inward looking to figure out for themselves as to why the city’s complexion has changed the way it has and why it has been hijacked – in their minds – by outsiders who are laying claim to it.

Karan Thapar: You’re saying two very interesting things – it’s been hijacked in their minds and that today Mumbai is every one else’s first and Maharashtrians’ last. Are Maharashtrians being discriminated against?

Shobhaa De: I would, to some extent, agree that they are being discriminated against in terms of job applications like the Railways – we saw last week what happened there – because Maharashtrian himself/herself has not perhaps fought for their rightful position within the state or the city. I say that with a great amount of compassion, not just for Maharashtrians but a system that seems to not recognise the dreams and ideals of the locals.

Karan Thapar: Before I come to why they haven’t fought for their rights, you are really seriously saying that today in Mumbai – the capital of Maharashtra – Maharashtrains are getting a raw deal?

Shobhaa De: I am definitely saying Maharashtrians get a raw deal which does not mean that I, in any way, support violence or endorse what Raj Thackeray stands for. What I am saying is that the raw deal has a lot to do with the Maharashtrian way of asserting or not asserting themselves.

Karan Thapar: They are not assertive enough?
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