Last Sunday,on the 13th of Jan,Ward 3 of the Hindu hostel went for a picnic (they prefer to call it a tour) to Sankarpur ghat once again.It was same the last year too.I don't know since when we've been falling upon it as our final choice for a picnic but i'm sure this'll remain for the coming 3-4 years.That does not mean it is some hopeless place where you went once only to pledge never to return there.Anyone who's been to Digha shall vouch for the serenity and still-preserved calm of the place.Though, I fear how long it would still remain like that.Seniors tell us that not more than 3-4 years ago it was an out-of-the-world place.I wonder if it was much like a non-descript beach where the middle-class would come to enjoy on their weekends, but still talk about it condescendingly because it was not a vibrant place,it didn't have a life.Only some villagers,perhaps,and nothing more to talk about.Now,I do see that a hotel has come up where people from the well-to-do families flock in great numbers.A little away from the place you see in the photo,at an ambling distance from this place,there's a small forest,of sorts.Around hundreds of trees spread in a small region.Besides the beach,this place is really romantic. Sitting here after a nice lunch in a siesta-mood with Ashu,I could understand the Wordsworthian grief.His repenting 'what Man has made of Man' and invocation of Milton confuses me at such times-whether i should be euphoric about Buddhobabu's zeal, after a dead spell of almost 3 decades.I dont share this romanticism about the bucolic life but while I was sitting there I could hear two sounds which made me ponder on my biases(that's what it is:not having any experience of the idyllic,village life or even a small town idleness what else could I call it?).Trying to sleep in the midst of those trees,I could hear birds chirping.Now,I don't understand these bird calls but those sounds are always soothing instead of that second disturbing sound of someone screaming on a mike farther, somewhere around that space.Those hellish noises would again and again press me to think about such things.Not that this was the first time I was thinking about these things-at Presi, you really can't make a bourgeois or even a romantic escape from such questions.
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We started coming back to our bus at around 5.30.We had to return that night.I came back to the bus after having helped Ritu and Saunabh bring their clothes drying on the roof of the bus.Most of the boys had gone for a stroll on the beach before we left.All of a sudden, someone came running to the bus shouting 'bawaal hoyeche!dekhi giye ki hocche?'I'm a lazy person who was not worried even when his board results were going to come out-good or bad,I'm the same kind at all times.I just went on the steps of the bus to have a view of the crowd. I could see most of the hostelers standing in a huddle,some of them shouting at the top of their voices.They were having an argument with a group of men and women.Earlier,I had seen my friends standing on the sacks of sands,above that group of people.Probably, with the intention of having a look(ogling?) at the womenfolk in their group.I quickly came to the conclusion that this was nothing but developments following their eve-teasing.So,instead of showing solidarity with my hostelers, I prefered staying back and cussing them('balbajari korle aar ki hobe?').
After a little time,this too passed like all those street-corner tiffs.
Everyone back into the bus discussing the incident-boisterous about their performance in the brawl;almost ready to get into a fight;what the hell could they have done 'jodi amra chollish jon nembe jetam?':ya, but the only problem were those women;its much better in bidesh where no such differences in behaviour towards women exist,blah,blah,blah!All this time I was disdainfully looking at each one entering the bus with a cryptic silence on my face.
Finally, I asked Ritu and Utpal-'case ta ki hoye chilo?'
And then I understood that I was gravely wrong,though, that did not mean I did away with my contempt as i found another reason for it!
Now,what actually happened is that this group of adults were behaving too 'liberally' amongst themselves-you know,when 'liberalism' tends to be too harsh on Indian-Victorian sensibilities and verges (or actually became in this case) on the vulgar.I'm told that men and women were behaving very lewdly in that group('ora ki nongrami korchilo,tui dekhechilish?').Perhaps,they were also dirtying the beach.Also,as they tell me,they were creating nuisance for other people too-they were disturbing passers-by in between their 'nongrami'.Hostelers decided to protest against this and told them to clean up the beach(this was an alibi to start a quarrel).Some in that crowd were drunk and impulsively,they replied with a threat to beat them up.Obviously,such a behaviour is bound to make anyone red under his collars,and this was a forty men-strong,testosterone-brimming,rowdy-young crowd.
It eventually started a 'bawaal'.
After having understood the actual facts,my initial reaction to Ritu and Utpal was little controlled.I told them that under prevalent Indian laws this was an illegal act,moreover if they were disturbing passers-by, then it was really wrong and punishable in the law of any land.I understand ,them disturbing others apart,their real anger rose from that 'nongrami'.so,initially I just viewed it as a conflict that has become common these days in our country.The tension between all those instances from DPS MMS to Husain's Bharatmata on one side and the people viewing these as threat to their idea of an Indian culture.My contempt was almost gone when I stumbled upon a deeper develpoment of our political system over so many years as a fallout of the failures of our judiciary.
Just when the bus was about to start,Saurabh Da had a little argument with Biman Da about the futility of the furore we raised on the beach.His argument was that since we could not prove what they were actually doing (I'm not talking about their dirtying the beach) ,there was no use if this argument took a serious turn and the police interfered.I too,then,had an argument with Biman Da, which was actually redundant since neither did he understand my viewpoint nor did I try to understand his question.We just started shouting at each other, then abruptly stopped and got back into our seats.
I was wondering whether they forgot the actual question in their spirited behaviour.True,their reaction was not unfounded but that was not their real aim.Had they tried to collect some evidence and then charge at them,they would have been more effective.The only reason I could find for this mob behaviour was their number.Our politics has reduced to a simplistic game of numbers.Since they were forty-strong,they protested in a loud voice.Alone,most of them would have ignored those people or would have meekly protested.And if anyone would have still been zealous enough to take an initiative, then I think he would have proceeded by first collecting some evidence so as to make them vulnerable.
This number of people around an issue,instead of leading to meaningful lobbying,slips down to muscle politics-'goondami' and 'gayer jor', just hooliganism.
And this was why I couldnt till last agree with them.As for my contempt:so be it.
