Thursday 2 June 2016

RADHA RANI KEE NAUTANKI

RADHA RANI KEE NAUTANKI


Oh hell; this day I am yet once again getting reminded of Radha Rani Kee Nautanki. As a very young kid, I had spent some memorable years in the terai belt of the then Uttar Pradesh, the undivided state, as it then used to be. I have fantastic memories of those times; one of the most important ones being of the great Radha Rani Kee Nautanki. She used to be a living legend in the terai belt consisting of the old districts of Pilibhit, Bareilly, Lakhimpur Kheri etc., and if I am not wrong, right up to the capital city of Lucknow. All segments of society right from top politicians and officialdom to zamindars to common citizen / villager yearned to see her shows. I had the good fortune of seeing her shows on a couple of occasions whenever I came home from school  and I will not hesitate to admit that perhaps I had developed a crush on that slightly thickset lady named Radha Rani. She was in her late thirties or may be very early forties. Whenever she came on the stage and danced to the tune of the then famous ‘Bichua’ song from the movie ‘Madhumati’...
Hoy oy oy oy oy
O daiya re daiya re
Chadh gayo papi bichhua
O hay-hay re mar gai
Koi utaro bichhua
Daiya re daiya re
Chadh gayo papi bichhua
 
... not only me, a small child, but the entire audience consisting of high and low officials of the district,
 as well as zamindars, reputed and common citizens / villagers, all alike, skipped few of their heart beats
, their lady wives passing on dirty and even venomous glances on them.
 
In this nostalgic background, I am gonna refer to today’s news papers carrying a new item about the opening of  the 57 kms long Gotthard Base Tunnel from Erstfeld to Bodio in Switzerland in the presence of Swiss President J Schneider-Amman and the German Chancellor Angela Merkel. This news item reminded me of ‘my’ Radha Rani. The news item further stated that it took about seventeen years to construct this tunnel from which about 28 million tonnes of rocks were removed to pave the way through. A technical marvel, the tunnel, at certain points is as much as 2.3 kilometres below the surface of the earth. Wow man, it certainly is one the greatest technical marvels of the world and it indicates the persistence, determination and resolve of the guys who conceived the idea and implemented it during the regime of several political parties and presidents of that country. Unlike India, none of the political parties either tried to close the project or even mar it with one controversy of the other.

And to top it all, there was no Radha Rani to dance on the occasion, no laser lights, no dramatics, no cheap publicity gimmicks, no nothing, absolutely no nothing else. Only its dedication to the people, some speeches and off went the leaders who inaugurated it. It reminded me of the simple ceremonies that once upon a time used to be held in India as well, like dedication and opening of massive projects like Bhakra Nangal. And then it sadly and painfully reminded me of the modern ‘trends’ in ‘Mera Mahan Bharat’ of today. Millions and trillions of rupees; your and my money, which we pay in taxes to the governments, are wasted on dramatics; on ‘nautch girls and boys’,’ bollywood sitaras’ and laser lights and this and that ‘tam-jham’ only to add glamour to such occasions and obtain cheap publicity there from. We, common aadmi of late great cartoonist Laxman, can do nothing but see, our eyes filled with tears, taxpayer’s, that is you and me, money going down the drain; we common aaadmi, trying to show that we are enjoying being raped by our own representatives.

What a shame?

And know what? Being henpecked, I showed this article, which I know, no one is going to publish, to Rita, my wife and she just laughed stating, ‘wow, it is gonna set up a healthy trend. Hence forth, on each and every occasion, the chief guests should inaugurate projects; petty, small, medium, big or massive, dancing a few steps themselves swinging to the tune of...
Hoy oy oy oy oy
 O daiya re daiya re
 Chadh gayo papi bichhua
 O hay-hay re mar gai
 Koi utaro bichhua
 O daiya re daiya re
 Chadh gayo papi bichhua    
 
And all that I could do, was just to smile and say AMEN




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