Where are our Lasantha Wickramatungas and Ramakrishna Pillais?

Sometimes I get the feeling that the age we live in doesn't have legends any longer. All the great characters have long gone and our world has been left with only the Shahrukhs and the Salman! Just when you are close to giving up all hope you read a story that makes every hair on your body stand on their ends. You hear about greatness in your midst. Greatness not of the kind of Alexander the great or Julius Caesar. Not of the kind that captures large territories and were close to being emperors of the world. I'm talking of the kind of great bravery amidst oppression. Greatness of the kind of M.K. Gandhi or Martin Luther King Jr. or Nelson Mandela. Those who looked into self-professed kings/rulers/reformers in the eye and had the guts to say

"You're wrong! You may hit me, blind me or even kill me, but I stand by what I say."

Not the kind that wins Nobel Peace Prizes, but the kind that doesn't need them. This is bravery that can strike fear into the hearts of the most fearful of people on earth. This is strength of character, this has no words to define it well.

Lasantha Wickramatunga was the editor of the Sunday Leader, a newspaper in Sri Lanka and these were his last written words:

If you remember nothing else, remember this: The Leader (his newspaper) is there for you, be you Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim, low-caste, homosexual, dissident or disabled. Its staff will fight on, unbowed and unafraid, with the courage to which you have become accustomed. Do not take that commitment for granted.  Let there be no doubt that whatever sacrifices we journalists make, they are not made for our own glory or enrichment: they are made for you. Whether you deserve their sacrifice is another matter. As for me, God knows I tried.

Lasantha was shot dead by motorcycle borne gunmen on his way to work on January 8^th. His gunmen still unidentified got away. Due to his fervor of unbiased reporting, we don't know and may never know whether the government or rebels were responsible. You can read his whole editorial here.

I have never heard of the Sunday Leader before this. Neither did I know Lasantha existed. However this news saddens me greatly because Lasantha was a rare species. Someone who still had the courage to say what people with power or firepower didn't always like to hear. Someone who didn't change at being shot at earlier (this was not the first attempt).

This reminded me of a little known great former journalist of British India. Swadeshabhimani Ramakrishna Pillai. He lived in a time that Kerala was still governed by Diwans appointed by the British. His newspaper editorials in the Swadeshabhimani reprimanded the diwan, the maharajah of Travancore and the British administration for the level of corruption and injustice in the society at the time. The swadeshabhimani was started and owned by Vakkom Mohammed Abdul Khadir who resisted all enticements and threats from the administration and other oligarchs to shut his editor up. Its one thing to say the truth and another thing to completely stand by a man you believe only shouts the truth. Abdul Khadir did just that.

Eventually Ramakrisha Pillai's firebrand journalism had the effect of shaking the roots of the whole diwan system and they had to silence him by arresting him (without a warrant mind you) and banishing him from the princely state of Travancore at the time and sealing the press at the time. Ramakrishna Pillai spent the rest of his life in the Presidency of Madras. All Indian newspapers at the time decried his banishment. Abdul Khadir got his press back when India became independent, but by then he had lost voice behind it to death.

It's almost a 100 years later. Not even the Prime Minister of India with an absolute majority can stifle our freedom of the press for long any more. Yet I feel we've lost something to annals of time here in India. We've lost the truth. Instead we have sensationalism, journalism guided by ad revenue and "Kissa Kiss ka.. Jaari hai".

Where have they gone?

King

For a long time this question has intrigued me as I'm sure it has numerous others. Shahrukh Khan. Do I really hate him? Why then do I somehow manage to get dragged to everyone of his movies? And to be very honest – I don't feel as if the movie was a total waste. There are always some fond memories of the movie. However with every passing movie, my dislike for that man increases. What is the dynamic at play here?

Initial thought was – Do I dislike him because he's successful? Because everyone else seems to love him? Nope – that's not it. I like others who are successful and lovable. The Big B for example – I'm not a die-hard fan, but I like him – he has definitely done a lot of stuff I love. Sachin Tendulkar – extremely successful and only a greater icon than Shahrukh, I like him too. So it's not the natural urge for humans to dislike people who're more successful than themselves. What else can it be?

Well I finally found out. The reason I dislike him is because he has been proclaimed king (more by himself, and some insipid news channels than by anyone else) of an art-form (rather than industry) at which he totally and absolutely sucks at. Acting – yup that's it. Shahrukh Khan is a terrible actor – yet he is king. I'm sure a lot of you disagree with me – and I'm guessing a majority of those are from the fairer sex. I know a lot of you go weak at the knees when he jhatkao's his hair or does that silly pout of his. But wake up and smell the glycerine. Not only is he a terrible actor, he's a wuss as well.

"Wuss – whaddaya mean wuss – don't you remember how he took all those hits for Ganga in Pardes, or how he waited for 22 years in jail for his love in Veer Zaara. How can you call him a wuss?"

True – those are some very brave exploits of his – though I'm still sticking with my theory. The reason being this. He hasn't done one daring role. The most daring role I think of his whole career has been Asoka – and that was such a mess. I'm afraid Bollywood really needs to do amends to one of the greatest emperors India has ever known. And I don't think he's a wuss because he made it a mess – What do you expect, I have more the look and feel of an emperor than Shahrukh does! I think he's a wuss because after that movie, he hasn't dared to pick up another daring role his whole life. He's comfortable picking up some very safe movies by his closest (some say too close) friends like Karan Johar and on top of that whine if one of his movies doesn't do good (KANK – Sic!!!. And his argument was "The audience isn't mature enough to understand and appreciate such a touchy, emotional topic". That's right, we'll never be mature enough to appreciate crap!).

However that being said – I have a plan for his movies to become better. For the same I shall begin by giving a lifecycle of a standard Shahrukh movie:

First hour of the movie: Starts strong, very likable in some movies might even fool me into thinking he's as good an actor as Emraan Hashmi!

Second hour of the movie: Here is where the ridiculousness of the plot begins to dawn on you, and begin considering – no wonder Shahrukh is acting in this. No intelligent actor would have opted for something like this.

Third hour of the movie: Here is where he really proves himself. He begins to get these delusions that he's a great romantic/emotional actor and tries to throw those pouts, has scenes where it seems his troubles are the biggest in the world (Yeah they solved world hunger last year, and are at a breakthrough for AIDS any moment now).

Simple way to improve your movies. When you're through to the interval, get yourself killed! Jump in front of a bus, off a building, immolation, asphyxiation, poisoning or whatever disease you always seem to have (Lung cancer would be innovative and not too far off from where you are in real life).

But then Shahrukh is a great actor and he has proof! Look at all the awards he's won!