On India’s 74th Independence Day : Why Consider Joining Politics?
[If you are angry or concerned about the direction in which India is headed, you need to consider joining Politics. The time for fence-sitting is over. If you are worried about the perception that Politics is ugly — consider this.]
Politics — Ugly?
No one would describe ‘Politics’ as a thing of beauty, or as joy forever — except perhaps John Keats himself who popularized this phrase in his poem ‘Endymion’ written in 1818. For Keats, beauty is available for anyone who has eyes to see. But 74 years of Indian Independence and the common perception of Indian politics still resonates with Paolo Bacigalupi’s description -
“Politics is ugly. Never doubt what small men will do for great power” (in ‘The Windup Girl’).
Now, why would anyone want to engage in an ugly profession, unless one is really motivated by the lust for power? Demonstrating the lack of trustworthiness that people have in Politicians, a US poll showed that out of 26 occupations, members of the public ranked Senators, Congressmen and state office holders 21st, 22nd and 23rd respectively in terms of their perceived trustworthiness (Gallop, 1999). This commonly prevalent notion about Politicians and Politics, explains why even an occasional ‘political’ post on your family, friends, school, college alumni WhatsApp group is likely to attract ire of some ‘neutral’, ‘non-political’ person. If the description on dating websites are anything to go by, there is a special category that requires people to express their political preferences and ‘apolitical’ is no-doubt a special category.
But especially in a country like India, which is increasingly seeing polarization of political views, can one choose to remain ‘apolitical’ and should one do so? In the last general election in May 2019 in India, the voter turnout was over 67% , with the highest ever participation by women voters — but this hardly tells the whole story about the actual number of people in India who take an active interest in Politics.
Let’s explore the two related questions of whether one can remain ‘apolitical’ and whether one should do so.
Can One Remain ‘Apolitical’?
In the world of mass information, constant bombarding of advertisements, and a multi-billion dollar marketing industry, we are being sold some thing or some idea every moment. A host of experts have warned us how Big Tech companies influence our decisions, including political ones, even when we are least aware. Richard Epstein, research psychologist at the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology says that his research based on dozens of randomized, controlled experiments shows that Google search results alone can shift more than 20% undecided voters — up to 80% in some demographic groups, without people being aware. When the biggest ruling party in India, in its four and half years of being in the Government, spends Rs. 2,136.39 crores on advertising in the print media and Rs.2,211.11 crore on electronic media — can one confidently claim immunity from its effect? Political parties try to focus on their ‘messaging’ and set out a separate budget for election propaganda. For e.g., in FY 2017–18, election propaganda was the primary expense of the BJP — it spent Rs 567.43 crore that year, whereas the Congress spent Rs 29.22 crore.
Therefore to assume that one can maintain ‘political neutrality’ in such charged political atmosphere, is to wrongfully assume — like the legend of Ostriches, that we can bury our heads in the sand.
Ostriches neither bury their heads in sand, nor do they need to. They only occasionally dip their heads below the ground, in the massive holes measuring about 6 to 8 feet wide and 2 to 3 feet deep, to gently turn their eggs, using their beaks. While we too can choose to dedicate our focus entirely to our families and professions occasionally, we cannot remain totally oblivious to the ‘politics’ of the day, forever — especially, to Politics as defined in its wider sense (per Cambridge dictionary) — “the activities of the government, members of law-making organizations, or people who try to influence the way a country is governed.”
Should One Join Politics?
Now let’s come to the ‘should’ question — should Indians choose to be ‘apolitical’ or should they actively join Politics?
More specifically, why should the youth — who may dream of pursuing a more artistic, or aesthetic field, bother joining Politics? For one, isn’t joining the Twitter army an easy way out? Besides, the rate of job-loss for the youth in India, may still not seem enough for the metaphorical frogs to jump out of the pot of boiling water.
Consider this. In the 1930’s, at the peak of the Great Depression, Britain is reported to have 3 million unemployed people, while USA had about 15 million unemployed people. While India reported a record high of 48.26 million unemployed in 2014, ‘unemployment’ still does not feature on the top list of our Politicians. Especially amongst the youth, during the nationwide lockdown itself, 27 million youth in the age group of 20–30 years, and another 14 million youth in the age group of 25–29 years have lost their jobs, as per the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy. Yet our political preferences, if media reports are any indication, are centered around Ram Mandir, and Sushant Singh Rajput’s death. The latter was still an opportunity for India to talk about mental health, for once, but that also seems an opportunity lost, while the media is busy conducting a trial of the celebrities involved.
However the Government did not sit pretty during the lockdown. It took some ‘giant leaps’, when all we wanted was it to take a few important steps. India now has an Education Policy, after 34 years, which does not answer some important questions. India’s Environment Impact Assessment Rules have changed ‘drastically’ and the Central Vista Project, is all set to ‘change the look’ of India’s political heart. The Government seems to move so fast on so many important issues — ask the common person who does not know which news to focus on, while the intellectual elite, seems busy catching up all the news, for and from the op-eds. It is exhausting! The one thing, we cannot blame the current ruling dispensation is a lack of action, especially the type which is sufficient to spurt others into action too. Thanks to the current government, there is enough inspiration around for those with a rebellious streak — but still, is it enough to nudge one to join Politics?
One meme doing circles, during the lockdown read — “Having now lived through a plague I can understand why so many renaissance paintings showed people just lying around on couches with their tits out.” [Quoted as received, but the author does not promote or accept the usage of the word ‘tits’]. Except that it is funny, it is also indicative of why ‘Art’ may seem like a more obvious choice and an interesting contrast to Politics, especially during difficult times.
But are the two so unrelated as they seem — Art and Politics? Before discussing that, let’s hear from the 19th century writer Marcel Proust, about ‘Art’ as a possible source of Happiness.
Proust and Sources of Happiness
Marcel Proust, the 19th century French writer, accredited for writing the monumental Novel — ‘In Search of Lost Time’, seems to give a special credit to ‘Artists’.
In trying to find out the possible meaning and purpose of life — Proust draws our attention to three of those : 1) Social Hierarchy — the belief that if only I become a part of the ‘cool’ party going on somewhere in the world, by associating with the who’s who, I will be happy — only to realize that some of these people do not necessarily have the charm, wit or intelligence to keep one happy; 2) Love — the belief that by merging with someone, I will escape the dread of loneliness, only to realize later that loneliness cannot be escaped ; 3) Art — which Proust describes as opposite of ‘habit’ — thereby helping to break the monotony of life and finding joy and beauty in experiencing small everyday things — such as puddle of water, fresh bread, sand etc.
Proust says we don’t all have to be ‘Artists’ in the form of a singer, dancer, painter etc. to be happy, as long as we can tear the veil of habit and approach life with a new sensitivity. We need to appreciate the little things in life — like the sunlight falling on water, the sound of the rustling of the winds etc.
While it may look like the world of ‘Artists’ and ‘Politicians’ are far apart, that is only half the story.
Artists and Politicians — More Different Or Similar?
For one, unlike Politicians, Artists have a reputation for their appreciation and quest for ‘beauty’. The political world, however, is not exactly aesthetical, atleast prima facie — one look at political posters (atleast in India) and the case for — the need for Artists in Politics is more than amply made. There are reasons why ‘politics’ is seen as a masculine pursuit, in its quest for power, as opposed to the feminine world of Arts, which is all about beauty, freedom and expression. But this binary lens does not do full justice either to Arts or Politics, nor provides us with a fuller understanding of ‘aesthetics’.
Terry Eagleton believes that the aesthetic is “a peculiarly effective ideological medium,” while Paul de Man reminds us that “the aesthetic still concerns us as one of the most powerful ideological drives to act upon the reality of history.” No wonder then, Artists around the world have increasingly used their art for sending a powerful political and social message.
What may bring together Artists and Politicians, is their commitment to ideology, their attempt to seek beauty in the ugliest places and their insistence that the world, inspite of all its sadness can be a better place — as long as one does not give up on ‘imagination’.
Another similarity between both Artists and Politicians is that they seem to treat ‘Time’ with a certain irreverence, knowing fully its ever changeable nature. Politicians know that the values, priorities and policies can be very different from one election season to another, but that with enough collective effort, one can play a role in changing it to suit one’s preferences. Artists too don’t necessarily seem to over-attach themselves with the ‘here and the now’, as they wield the power to transport us into a different time realm altogether. And yet, both Politicians and Artists are a product of their times.
While Politicians may seem to emphasize more on planning, their lives are as multi-dimensional as that of Artists — with their attention and sensitivity limited to no one thing, their work following no linear structural pattern, instead drawing upon a river like fluidity.
While they both have respect for systems, they are both also acutely aware of the force of the ‘invisible hand’. One stroke of brush — and the painting may look very different. One faux pas, and work of a lifetime may fail to take one to the desired outcome. So the level of comfort with unpredictability is also common to both.
In short, the world of a Politician requires — boldness of imagination, an appreciation of beauty and treating the whole world as one’s canvas — features that one may not consider at the outset, when thinking about Politics. And this makes the world of Politicians and their pursuits, very similar to the seemingly opposite world of Artists.
What is needed today, more than ever before is for our youth to see that they cannot afford to remain aloof, disconnected and ‘apolitical’. Their quest for beauty, passion, aesthetics and ideology can take them on an interesting journey, where they no longer have to choose between inhabiting one of the two seemingly opposing worlds — Arts and Politics. Whichever sphere of existence they inhabit, between those two seeming extremes, they can charter a path towards the pursuit of all that truly matters to them.
What we need, today, is a lens that accepts this clandestine affair between Arts and Politics, while appreciating the power of Jacques Derrida’s concept of Deconstruction — which requires us to dismantle our excessive loyalty to any one idea and try to see the truth which may be buried in its opposite. This appreciation of the truth of the opposite side may in turn also inform our own politics. We don’t always have to choose one side over the other — but always be committed to the pursuit of truth and stand for an ideology and cause based Politics.
As Buddha points to us — truth always lies somewhere in the middle, and that truth and beauty has to be the common pursuit of everyone, irrespective of one’s profession, world-view or vocation. Only then can we build — not just a stronger democracy but also fast-track humanity’s evolution itself.
And yet, when there are moments in a nation’s history, when the war between Adharma and Dharma is on and the lines are drawn — one cannot tremble when taking a stand, or a side. The beauty of Politics, of India, and of Arts itself — you see — is that all that is true, its opposite can also be true. Our Politics can no longer be of words alone. It is in action, that we will find, a true understanding of its underlying principles.
Great talent has free spirit. Limit not yours, to any one domain and bring yourself to a better engagement with Politics of the country. Better still — pursue it actively and help shape a world full of beauty, truth and all things joyous.
If you are still afraid of the consequences, the path, of what is to come, of the forces you are up against, here is something to keep us going —
“All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be finished in the first 1000 days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet, but let us begin.”
- John F Kennedy (Inaugural Address, 20 January, 1961”)
Avani Bansal is an advocate at the Supreme Court. She is also Secretary of the Delhi State of All India Professionals’ Congress. She can be contacted at advocateavanibansal@gmail.com; Tweets @bansalavani
