Talking point: Kolkata Knight Riders winning the IPL trophy and
thereafter being honored by the CM of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee.
Questions thrown up: Was it worth the hoopla by the government?
Was it a case of Didi hijacking the show?
Was it a case of an ambitious politician hitching on for selfish mileage?
Was it a drainage of funds?
Was it a case of mutual back-slapping for ulterior gains?
Was the IPL victory blown out of proportion?
Was KKR's feat more an SRK feat?
Did the event expose West Bengal's Governor's blatant bias?
I wanted to have an overview of the controversy myself
and hence who else to talk it over with but my buddy Bonnie?
Here are the excerpts of our candid conversation:
Bonnie: I would say that the questions need to be asked. They are very much relevant because we need to find out if our state has really been suffering from an intellectual bankruptcy as evident from the manner in which a large section of the so called intelligent citizens choose to dance to the tunes of a piper who is at best a megalomaniac, and if our fears prove right, is an outright fascist dictator.
Ani: Isn't it also a case of unnecessary flak for an over-enthusiastic leader who simply chooses to do things her own way, swayed more by emotions than anything else?
Bonnie: Well, one in as powerful position as hers is required to tone down what you may put lightly as an overdose of emotions or enthusiasm. Did she really need to host two major events of felicitation for SRK's team, one in front of the Writer's Building and then the main event at Eden Gardens?
Ani: But you cannot deny the mass frenzy, the hysteria...... can you? People were overwhelmed by the long anticipated victory and the throng of masses to greet the players both along the route in which the team bus travelled and at Eden Gardens itself said it all.......
Bonnie: But, how could the CM see in it a victory of epic proportions? She said that it was Bengal's victory..... that it was like winning the world! Why deny that KKR is a private team...... the felicitation was just an excuse for Mamata Banerjee to hog the limelight....... the way she strutted the stadium or the way she wielded complete control - or at least tried to - is the flamboyance that we are all so used to by now, but it was a revelation for the entire nation, wasn't it? Undoubtedly, it is us Bengalis who would be lampooned yet again!
Ani: I wasn't so sure that the 'Purple Pride' was synonymous with Bangla and Bangalis while the IPL was in full swing, but after the victory, and more so after the riotous circus today, Bangalis are basking in the pride alright.......
Bonnie: You see, that was in the very scheme of things...... one surely would overlook the major lapses of the 'green' party's governance and would not even mind giving the 'supremo' a benefit of doubt, the purple-green combo would be tinting the glasses of the opiate alright.
Ani: I would like to leave the inferences and the final say to all the readers........ plus, time will reflect the arguments and counter arguments best........ remember, he (or she) laughs the loudest who laughs last!
There's no endnote in politics, or in sports. The game's always on.
thereafter being honored by the CM of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee.
Questions thrown up: Was it worth the hoopla by the government?
Was it a case of Didi hijacking the show?
Was it a case of an ambitious politician hitching on for selfish mileage?
Was it a drainage of funds?
Was it a case of mutual back-slapping for ulterior gains?
Was the IPL victory blown out of proportion?
Was KKR's feat more an SRK feat?
Did the event expose West Bengal's Governor's blatant bias?
I wanted to have an overview of the controversy myself
and hence who else to talk it over with but my buddy Bonnie?
Here are the excerpts of our candid conversation:
Bonnie: I would say that the questions need to be asked. They are very much relevant because we need to find out if our state has really been suffering from an intellectual bankruptcy as evident from the manner in which a large section of the so called intelligent citizens choose to dance to the tunes of a piper who is at best a megalomaniac, and if our fears prove right, is an outright fascist dictator.
Ani: Isn't it also a case of unnecessary flak for an over-enthusiastic leader who simply chooses to do things her own way, swayed more by emotions than anything else?
Bonnie: Well, one in as powerful position as hers is required to tone down what you may put lightly as an overdose of emotions or enthusiasm. Did she really need to host two major events of felicitation for SRK's team, one in front of the Writer's Building and then the main event at Eden Gardens?
Ani: But you cannot deny the mass frenzy, the hysteria...... can you? People were overwhelmed by the long anticipated victory and the throng of masses to greet the players both along the route in which the team bus travelled and at Eden Gardens itself said it all.......
Bonnie: But, how could the CM see in it a victory of epic proportions? She said that it was Bengal's victory..... that it was like winning the world! Why deny that KKR is a private team...... the felicitation was just an excuse for Mamata Banerjee to hog the limelight....... the way she strutted the stadium or the way she wielded complete control - or at least tried to - is the flamboyance that we are all so used to by now, but it was a revelation for the entire nation, wasn't it? Undoubtedly, it is us Bengalis who would be lampooned yet again!
Ani: I wasn't so sure that the 'Purple Pride' was synonymous with Bangla and Bangalis while the IPL was in full swing, but after the victory, and more so after the riotous circus today, Bangalis are basking in the pride alright.......
Bonnie: You see, that was in the very scheme of things...... one surely would overlook the major lapses of the 'green' party's governance and would not even mind giving the 'supremo' a benefit of doubt, the purple-green combo would be tinting the glasses of the opiate alright.
Ani: I would like to leave the inferences and the final say to all the readers........ plus, time will reflect the arguments and counter arguments best........ remember, he (or she) laughs the loudest who laughs last!
There's no endnote in politics, or in sports. The game's always on.
4 comments:
Didi shamelessly hitched onto the KKR bandwagon, and gloated in the success with unabashed words of praise for the Khan-Dada!
SRK's KKR and Didi's SRK....... this is the perfect example of mutual politicizing.
Miss Banerjee likes to have the stamp of authority over all things Bengal, and all things Kolkata, and she boasts of the masses' blessings; so the event, or stringed events, could not be termed an aberration. It goes with the way things are functioning, or have become dysfunctional in West Bengal - the perfect La La Land!
I must say that KKR's victory was sweet and well-deserved. But the felicitation hoopla left a badtaste in the mouth of all those who do not belong to the TMC camp!
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