To,
The President of India.
Dear Madam,
On the occasion of 64th year of Independence I would love to send lots of love and greetings. I know Madam that you would be very busy but then I couldn’t stop myself. I believe that you will spend few minutes reading my simple note and let me assure that I am not driven by any opportunistic motive. My motive is same as yours; we all want to India and Indians to grow and live in prosperity.
Madame let me first introduce my self; I am a simple guy who hails from a middle class family and was fortunate enough to get a proper education. Currently working for a multi national company and trying to save money with of course buying pleasures on EMI’s. I see you are giving a confused look. I know you must be thinking then why I am complaining when my a/c gets credited every 30th of the month, watch a movie every other weekend in a multiplex, dines with his would be wife in nice restaurants. Madam the answer lays in my flats assets. Madam I have a mirror and a newspaper. Mirror that’s no more a friend of mine and a newspaper that is no more an interesting read. I know that was a foolish explanation but Madam what can I do when I read day after day thunderous stories about murder, loot, rape, infiltration, cheating, injustice etc. Madam, I have a problem facing my own mirror image. I still have some humanity left in private and I believe you will also have.
Ahaa I see you frowning Madam don’t be I trust you after all you are The President of India.
Madame let me tell you about my growth in rational terms. My brain started evolving when our beloved prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi was taking our country ahead in leaps and bound and our current prime minister, Manmohan ji was taking care of the financial sector of India. Madame by birth I am an optimistic young guy so my chest widens like all the bollywood heroes when we had a GDP of 8 and above, when our stock markets reach to new heights, when pundits from developed countries speak positive about our matribhoomi, when we bought 200 tons of gold from IMF, when we won the first T-20 world cup, when India conquered the number one status on Test ranking, when Indian movies are screened in various International cinematic festivals and the list can go on and on. Please don’t misunderstand me if I have avoided loads of achievements, this space is too small for those infinite mammoth achievements. People may think that India is a developing country but I don’t and I am confident you would agree with me.
But Madame do you really think are we really achieving new horizons? Madame please allow me to ask you few questions. Pardon me if I can’t control my emotions at any given point of time.
Forget it Madam I won’t get on to these never ending riots created in the name of religion, caste etc. I am sure that you know who all are behind it but don’t set up review committees as it’s a never ending process, waste of the hard earned money of the tax payers and the ruling government mends according to its benefit. So let’s press the escape button on these topics and I am confident that by now you must be also used to it just as all other citizens. What can you also do Madam when from peon to the big babus all eat money depending on their post and grades? Ahha don’t worry I won’t bring up the topic of Common Wealth Games (CWG). I am sure no one knows how big the corruption is but every ones in minting money. Not to worry madam no one is going to hurl shoe on you as people of India have a very short memory. We will forget like we did the Boffors, Chara ghotala and so many that came up and also the never ending list that never came up.
Okay madam don’t loose your cool and patience please bear for few moments and I am done. I know I can’t stop myself when it comes to my mother and my motherland. Oops sorry it’s also you motherland, my sincere apologies.
Madam one last question, what is your favourite food? I think it should be dal-chawal or is it something exotic. Sorry madam please forgive for my ignorance but for me my favourite food is home cooked hot dal-chawal by my mother. Okay forget it you might have different preferences but when was the last time you visited a grocery shop or a mushy market? I know no one loves to bargain but then I tell you madam all these big malls charge you exorbitant prices on the heck of brand. What will I understand about brand, I understand fresh and cheap things? Madam are you bored? I see you are lost in some thought. I think I got it, no madam I don’t belong from the opposition party. Forget me being associated to any party no one ever served a government company except my father. So please delete that inane thought. So where was I, okay mushy market? So your silence makes me confident that of late you have not been near to any market. It’s not your fault; your vehicle must be passing through all those VVIP roads. Madam do take out some time and ask your servants how often they have a proper meal. Yes it’s an irony in one hand our finance department boasts that India has done well in the recent credit crunch but fail to explain why the inflation is in double digits for the past whole year. Madame it’s not vegetable or the pulses, the vicious circle starts from increase in Oil prices. Once the oil prices goes up, transportation becomes expensive and they lead to increase in the prices of vegetables and so on hence forth. Madame I don’t understand finance but I pay my taxes properly so can’t I at least get the basic amenities like food and water. Hope I am not asking more?
Okay Madam I am done, I know I have wasted your precious time but then I had to speak at some point of my life. There are some more issues but I will leave that work to be done by the opposition parties. So Madam I hope you won’t delete this email and will at least give some thought. Ahh what happened Madam, you look tensed again. Don’t worry Madam, I am not doing any secret media operation and nor I belong to any party as I stated before. I don’t have any vested interest. I think you might be thinking when I know all the problems so I might have thought of some solutions too. Well to clear things Madam, I am a common young man and I am too busy in earning, paying my EMI’s and taking care of my family. Rest even you invite me to join your relatives party I would politely decline it as Politics is a dirty game and I am happy in my small world. Don’t worry Madame if your relatives don’t own a party but isn’t it a good option after your term ends.
Without taking any more space and time. I bid goodbye and I hope by next year you might solve some problems or maybe there would be some more new problems. Who cares, don’t worry I will forget about this once the holiday is over.
Madam it’s true we Indians become patriotic on Independence Day and I am not an exception.
Yours faithfully,
Common Young Man
(I am not enclosing my name as I have a common face like every Indian does).
The President of India.
Dear Madam,
On the occasion of 64th year of Independence I would love to send lots of love and greetings. I know Madam that you would be very busy but then I couldn’t stop myself. I believe that you will spend few minutes reading my simple note and let me assure that I am not driven by any opportunistic motive. My motive is same as yours; we all want to India and Indians to grow and live in prosperity.
Madame let me first introduce my self; I am a simple guy who hails from a middle class family and was fortunate enough to get a proper education. Currently working for a multi national company and trying to save money with of course buying pleasures on EMI’s. I see you are giving a confused look. I know you must be thinking then why I am complaining when my a/c gets credited every 30th of the month, watch a movie every other weekend in a multiplex, dines with his would be wife in nice restaurants. Madam the answer lays in my flats assets. Madam I have a mirror and a newspaper. Mirror that’s no more a friend of mine and a newspaper that is no more an interesting read. I know that was a foolish explanation but Madam what can I do when I read day after day thunderous stories about murder, loot, rape, infiltration, cheating, injustice etc. Madam, I have a problem facing my own mirror image. I still have some humanity left in private and I believe you will also have.
Ahaa I see you frowning Madam don’t be I trust you after all you are The President of India.
Madame let me tell you about my growth in rational terms. My brain started evolving when our beloved prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi was taking our country ahead in leaps and bound and our current prime minister, Manmohan ji was taking care of the financial sector of India. Madame by birth I am an optimistic young guy so my chest widens like all the bollywood heroes when we had a GDP of 8 and above, when our stock markets reach to new heights, when pundits from developed countries speak positive about our matribhoomi, when we bought 200 tons of gold from IMF, when we won the first T-20 world cup, when India conquered the number one status on Test ranking, when Indian movies are screened in various International cinematic festivals and the list can go on and on. Please don’t misunderstand me if I have avoided loads of achievements, this space is too small for those infinite mammoth achievements. People may think that India is a developing country but I don’t and I am confident you would agree with me.
But Madame do you really think are we really achieving new horizons? Madame please allow me to ask you few questions. Pardon me if I can’t control my emotions at any given point of time.
- Madam I am sure that you remember May-June 1999. Yes the Kargil war, when we are attacked by our neighbor and the whole nation had their blood boiling when we saw the coffins of our beloved soldiers. Our brave soldiers fought for every inch at extreme and bizarre conditions. Finally we chased away the intruders and we regained our own land from Pakistan. Pakistan is still to accept it but by now new a new born baby is also aware what is reality and what myth is. Our neighbors night and day planned and are still planning to break India in pieces but I think US is yet to grow up. Forget it let me not talk about US, let me stick to my point. Madam all this makes sense in my small brain but I can’t understand why our own armed forces are killing innocent people of Kashmir in the name of curbing violence. I know every one loves to talk about Kashmir as if it’s quite a national pride. Madame, do you watch television? I know that’s a stupid question but I am not talking about our daily saas,ba,bahu soaps. I also watch television but I fail to understand what the rationality is when a bunch of learned people shout and fight on what is wrong and right in Kashmir. Madame I am not literate like those bunch of elite people but as small kid I always loved playing, going to school with my dad on cycle. I can tell my childhood was quite enchanting but I was shocked when I read an article on rediff that had a subject line meet the new generation of stone throwers in Kashmir. Madam please read the article where kids are taking stones and saying that we want to kill that police man as he is killing my bothers and raping my sisters. Madam do you think this is a good sign? We can stop intruders but how will we control our own people with this rage for their own armed and security force. Please madam take this issue with utmost seriousness. Sorry I am reminding your duty but I hope this flue doesn’t proliferate in other states as I don’t think our pharmaceutical companies can produce a vaccine for this rage and hatred.
- Madam let me move ahead and revisit the dark nights of 26/11 when our own Mumbai was a battle zone. Before I talk blood let me first congratulate The Tata group for reopening The Taj Palace Mumbai (Wing-2).I would also grab this opportunity to appreciate our governments efforts for creating immense pressure on our neighbouring country to accept lot of things. Let me not get into that matter then this note would be never ending. So you must be thinking again why I am then taking up this issue when we have almost forgotten except those families who have lost their beloved ones. Madame we were quite efficient in pumping bullets on the chest of those militants but are we doing justice in pumping bullets on our fellow citizens in Naxal affected areas. I know people may debate that they have taken arms and they are also killing people. Yes I am against it and I am against arms protest unlike our own Arundhuti Roy but come to think why these poor farmers are holding up arms. Madame even they have family, they love to see the sun rising and sun setting with their family but then why have they suddenly taken up arms and are hungry for blood. I know madam you will tell that they are wrong and they are misguided but madam how can village after village join the revolution. Madam I come from that place but it was not like that when I was a child but all of a sudden it’s blood every where. Please madam I would love if you go there are see in what condition how life survives and then justify who is right and wrong. What is the point in talking about Maoists sitting in a chilled news room? Yes please make a surprise visit otherwise all your faithful officials would make a paradise and you would be puzzled whether that place ever had a drop of blood. See our officials are not that bad too but they only work when you bend the rod. Don’t worry I support democratic way rather than an autocratic style.
Forget it Madam I won’t get on to these never ending riots created in the name of religion, caste etc. I am sure that you know who all are behind it but don’t set up review committees as it’s a never ending process, waste of the hard earned money of the tax payers and the ruling government mends according to its benefit. So let’s press the escape button on these topics and I am confident that by now you must be also used to it just as all other citizens. What can you also do Madam when from peon to the big babus all eat money depending on their post and grades? Ahha don’t worry I won’t bring up the topic of Common Wealth Games (CWG). I am sure no one knows how big the corruption is but every ones in minting money. Not to worry madam no one is going to hurl shoe on you as people of India have a very short memory. We will forget like we did the Boffors, Chara ghotala and so many that came up and also the never ending list that never came up.
Okay madam don’t loose your cool and patience please bear for few moments and I am done. I know I can’t stop myself when it comes to my mother and my motherland. Oops sorry it’s also you motherland, my sincere apologies.
Madam one last question, what is your favourite food? I think it should be dal-chawal or is it something exotic. Sorry madam please forgive for my ignorance but for me my favourite food is home cooked hot dal-chawal by my mother. Okay forget it you might have different preferences but when was the last time you visited a grocery shop or a mushy market? I know no one loves to bargain but then I tell you madam all these big malls charge you exorbitant prices on the heck of brand. What will I understand about brand, I understand fresh and cheap things? Madam are you bored? I see you are lost in some thought. I think I got it, no madam I don’t belong from the opposition party. Forget me being associated to any party no one ever served a government company except my father. So please delete that inane thought. So where was I, okay mushy market? So your silence makes me confident that of late you have not been near to any market. It’s not your fault; your vehicle must be passing through all those VVIP roads. Madam do take out some time and ask your servants how often they have a proper meal. Yes it’s an irony in one hand our finance department boasts that India has done well in the recent credit crunch but fail to explain why the inflation is in double digits for the past whole year. Madame it’s not vegetable or the pulses, the vicious circle starts from increase in Oil prices. Once the oil prices goes up, transportation becomes expensive and they lead to increase in the prices of vegetables and so on hence forth. Madame I don’t understand finance but I pay my taxes properly so can’t I at least get the basic amenities like food and water. Hope I am not asking more?
Okay Madam I am done, I know I have wasted your precious time but then I had to speak at some point of my life. There are some more issues but I will leave that work to be done by the opposition parties. So Madam I hope you won’t delete this email and will at least give some thought. Ahh what happened Madam, you look tensed again. Don’t worry Madam, I am not doing any secret media operation and nor I belong to any party as I stated before. I don’t have any vested interest. I think you might be thinking when I know all the problems so I might have thought of some solutions too. Well to clear things Madam, I am a common young man and I am too busy in earning, paying my EMI’s and taking care of my family. Rest even you invite me to join your relatives party I would politely decline it as Politics is a dirty game and I am happy in my small world. Don’t worry Madame if your relatives don’t own a party but isn’t it a good option after your term ends.
Without taking any more space and time. I bid goodbye and I hope by next year you might solve some problems or maybe there would be some more new problems. Who cares, don’t worry I will forget about this once the holiday is over.
Madam it’s true we Indians become patriotic on Independence Day and I am not an exception.
Yours faithfully,
Common Young Man
(I am not enclosing my name as I have a common face like every Indian does).
good letter
but please remember President is rubber stamp.
a powerless person.
Thanks SM for the comments :)
Everyone is minting profit and enjoying being a mute spectator.