Cricket, Development and India’s Fandom

In India it is all about cricket apart from religion. I realized cricket is a metaphor for all that happens in the country. Yet another edition of IPL is reaching its climax. A legend has relinquished his captaincy without getting a crowning glory of an IPL championship. That indeed is cricket. You win some and you lose some. There is a huge fandom who religiously watch cricket and hero worship the batters and bowlers not to leave out the coaches, sleeping couches, commentators, marketeers. It is cricket that has made India truly the Viswaguru. What with the most powerful BCCI dictating terms in the arena of a common wealth game. For India it is a form of reverse colonization. When BCCI sneezes the entire cricket world catches a cold. The white vultures are hovering around for their piece of flesh from the IPL bounty. Never mind that at the world championship in test cricket a tiny nation put the great Bharat in her place. The bounties of IPL are far greater than representing one’s nation what ever may be stated otherwise.

Coming to actual development, India in Human Development Index stands with a score of 131, worthy of any batter. Like the IPL the government has been playing the game of development with its own IPL i.e Indian Policy League. Like a game of T-20 which gets over quickly the policies are pronounced and got over quickly. Like a fast bowler the government has been deploying bouncers, reverse swing and if that doesn’t work deploy spin. Spin a yarn about green shoots being seen; that India’s economy is the fastest growing etc. But the economy like the 5 blind men and an elephant refuses to be defined and something called the GDP refuses to reach double figures like a struggling batsman.

Then the pandemic has taken the turf out of the development equation. The moody emperor proudly announces that 80 crores of people are living in subsistence by being provided with ration. That magical figure 80, a score any batsmen in struggling times such as the prevalent one would be proud to have scored. What happens to the 80 crores people? Will they be left to sell pakoras while the Adani and Ambani made us feel very proud that we have the two richest Asians amid us.

When the pandemic seems to have receded the PM took off in the specially designed plane called the Air India One, bought with a whopping budget of Rs 8000 Crore befitting a Vishwaguru to hob nob with POTUS who trumped over his opponent with a lotus by his side. Never mind that ‘lotus’ gave the Viswaguru a lesson on democracy. The Viswaguru had his revenge moments when he declared that India is a mother of all democracy, not withstanding a fact that EIU ranking gave a score of 53. Yet again any batter would be proud to have scored half a century and the fandom went gaga over his new pronouncement. Not to back down the Khiladi no: 2 announced that the Viswaguru is no less a batter when it comes to democratic credentials.

In the meantime, like in a test match, a true form of cricket according to connoisseurs the farmers movement reached crossed a magical figure of triple century of protest days. The farmers proved that when it comes to bowling, they are no less gifted when they unleashed a googly and bowled the government over at Lakhimpura, a place that would be remembered in annals of history for the tragedy. The two powerful umpires were awe struck and speechless.

That brings us to the topic of human rights where our score stands at 111. Yet again a score that would make any batsmen proud. But is so happens it is the opponent batsmen who has scored the runs. Of course, a nation that represents one-sixth of the humanity needs his own definition of what is democracy or human rights. Why follow the diktat of western ideals? When the Ram Rajya is ushered in you can redefine the constitution also.

The world cup of T-20 is in the offing. The sQUAD has been announced. Will it turn out to be like a game of Squid like the popular Netflix serie,s a game of gamble when the masses become martyrs for a few honchos and their political nexus to have fun?

In the meanwhile, when it comes to development issues like unemployment where the figures are verging near a double digit the government worries whether like a set batsman it would continue to score. Like the yesteryears astras Make in India, Atmanirbharta have been tried out. The batsman has figured out the bowlers’ weaponry. He is not willing to cross the Lakhsman Rekha lest he would be stumped out like Sitha and plays a waiting game at his crease. Of course, one need not forget to mention that petrol and diesel have both scored centuries, a bleak record reflecting on the bowling skills of the emperor and his cohorts. Fandom has fallen silent.

It would be a matter of time like the legendary cricketer who relinquished his captaincy without the crowning glory of an IPL cup, will the moody emperor follow suit in full monty in time to come?