Where the world comes to die . . .
Farida Shaikh goes looking for Varanasi
It is of course as a fiction writer that Chetan Bhagat has gained this immense popularity. He decided to quit his job as an investment banker to follow his passion, writing, which to him was more important than monetary or professional success. In May 2010 he was enlisted in Time magazine's list of 100 most influential people. In the same year Malalai Joya was also enlisted. She was a fierce critic of the NATO war in Afghanistan. She was admonished for her views by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who was enlisted in the 2005 list of influential persons. Revolution 2020 is the writer's fifth book. UNV Motion Picture has acquired the rights to this work. Earlier the movie, 3 Idiots, was based on the writer's debut novel, Five Points Someone, which chronicles the importance of success. The New York Times called Bhagat 'the biggest selling English language novelist in India's history.' Bhagat writes on youth and development issues. Revolution 2020 is set in the Indian city of Varanasi '… where the world comes to die…' and the holy river where people go either for cremation of the dead or to cleanse themselves of all evils. It is about corruption, by persons afflicted with this social disease, who are injecting it into the education system, affecting the ethics and morality of the youth who are the future generation of the country. The story is about the private technical college set up on farm land, 10 kilometers away, on the Lucknow road. Education in modern times is a commercial enterprise with much emphasis on marketing and promotional gimmick for its growth and survival, like any business. Traditional roles have been modified to fit operations of trusts as non-profit units. The registrar of the company is to be bribed for incorporation of the trust without any delay. The inspector from UGC would have to be given a packet of money for college inspection. A private college required government university affiliation. About six copies of 40 pages with signatures have to be submitted to complete the approval process. '… Every aspect of running a private college involved bribing someone…' When the professor of mechanical engineering (a woman) observes during a meeting that the HR managers of 'reputed companies' want 'personal payout' for hiring college graduates, she is asked to shut up and not to dwell on HR matters. Bhagat is a motivational speaker, and many motivational dialogues are found in the narration of events. '… when someone refers to your weak spot, even indirectly it hurts… you will go into the exam center super confident, promise? … I want you to feel that you can get whatever you want in life. Because I know you can… believe (that) you have already made it.' The protagonist is a poor student who wants to be '…a rich man.' His father wants him to become an engineer. He cannot get through the entrance exam to engineering college, even the second time, so he never makes it to college but he does set up and manage a college. He makes money, has a house and Mercedes to his name. His engineer friend, a trainee news reporter, gets fired to 'silence the truth… There is politics in organization… (and one)…has to learn to fit in.' His friend is a rebel '… He doesn't want to fit in. He wants to change journalism. Give it some teeth'. He starts his own newspaper. The story is on the self evaluation of a person who starts off as a loser though as of now he is the one who ' made it in life'; and the person who qualified for the entry exam is the one 'who had failed.' Revolution 2020 is about power, which means a lot in that country. To be in politics and be an MLA is important for purposes of marriage and a high standard of living. It is about revenge, from within the family. Like charity it begins at home '… the revolution begins at home… Society changes only when individual family norms are challenged… a real people's revolution one day… '. There is advice on following one's passion. For opening a college is not exactly this person's passion, (but) it is the best opportunity life has given him. Feeling passionate is amazing. 'Money … I want to make a lot of money...' and making money is ambition and not passion. Central to the story are human relationships that '… are about selective sharing and hiding of information to the point of crazy confusion.' And all day to day human activities emerge out of some form of motivation and inspiration. As in Hindu prayer, aarti is a ritual. It also signifies deep attachment to all life's events, happenings and occurrences, connected to, may be through devotion, '… may you live a thousand years …' Or one's carnal desire is to be satiated by 'ordering a call girl… who looks decent… who won't attract too much attention in a college campus…' Reading Revolution 2020, (I picked up the book from the mobile book man, at the traffic signal, a photo copy version) I searched for the same writer's title in the book shops. I could not find any. Quite excitedly, from the mobile book man I picked up three other Bhagat titles! But then it occurred to me: was I becoming a part of the illegal business--- book piracy? I consoled myself, for at the end of it all, business is illegal. It is only a matter of degree! Seen more as a voice of a generation, Bhagat opens up the question of ethics and morals in the corporate world that includes the modern educational system. Bhagat very categorically questions the standard set for a successful man (not a successful person though.) Is the standard for success a shifting scale or a fixed one? Aravind Adiga's White Tiger is about the secret success of a man. The successful entrepreneur found that bribery to the police was essential for running his business. To start the business, the future entrepreneur has to kill his employer and steal his money. He rationalizes his action within an economy that is totally dependent upon a servant class, and corruption is 'like the lubricant for the new found technology.' Under many circumstances ambition and passion are found to be related. However, the accelerated pace of commercialization in many aspects of modern life leaves many grey areas for the young generation. Do family backgrounds impinge upon individuals interacting within a common commercial framework? The title of the book projects an ideal where '… A society, where truth, justice and equality are respected more than power…' Such is our most progressive society.
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