Sadda Haq...Aithe Rakh

Marzi se jeene ki bhi main 

Kya tum sabko main arzi doon 

Matlab ki tum sabka mujhpe 

Mujhse bhi zyada haq hai 

Sadda haq, Aithe Rakh 

Sadda Haq..Aithe Rakh

These are a few lines from the song that is currently topping the charts. The beauty of this song is a rebellious attitude with lyrics to boot - it’s a quintessential Rahman number (need to listen to it more than a few times to start loving it). 

In this current state of dichotomy that our country is going through, this song goes much beyond a mere item on a playlist. The dichotomy exists here because India is doing well in terms of economic & trade activity, meeting GDP growth targets and is touted to be the next super power. On the other hand, there are grave issues like the social disparity, illiteracy and corruption plaguing us bitterly. 

This is how the youth of this nation thinks about our present state and the song portrays our chagrin perfectly. The song also reminds us of our Haq: our rights that we have by virtue of being a taxpayer; by virtue of being part of the mandate that elects the government. By virtue of being the civil society! 

What we least expect – the first thing in the morning newspaper - is to read about millions of our money swindled away right underneath us and all we can do is feel as helpless as a poor semi-celeb judging a reality show alongside Navjot Sidhu. We toil hard, curb on our luxuries and read every article with the words ‘savings’ or ‘investments’ in it - hoping to save money. And where does this money end up? In acquiring a flat in some scheme meant for widows of ex-army men; not for us but for babus who are supposed to be the protectors of our money. What an Adarsh we set! 

Who am I to whine about all this?


I am the common man who fears being blown away to pieces while travelling in a crowd; who is frustrated by seeing Rs. 2000 crores being devoured by a vacuum called Suresh Kalmadi; who is fed up of the ever increasing list of accused in the 2G scam and yet who sees no progress at all in resolving the case. A maniac (read as Kasab) is sent to our country to get killed and how do we treat him? We keep him alive with innumerable charges and trails. Atithi Devo Bhava exemplified! And then we have the Mayawati Tussade’s museum (read as park), soon to be declared a world heritage, for the Great Indian Note trick that made 650 crores vanish in thin air. Add to it all the black money stashed in tax havens and yet we claim India is a poor developing country where Rs. 32 a day is enough to survive (Did the Planning Commission factor in all the money that ends up in the coffers of politicians from our pockets, too?). Give me a break!  

Let alone issues of national importance, we have to grind for even our basic amenities. Reaching our destination is becoming as difficult as NASA’s search for water on Mars. The first Herculean task is to convince, oops, literally plead to the errant autos drivers and hope that they are also going the same way as we are! This is one aspect that redefines all marketing concepts and I start to wonder if consumer is indeed the King. Auto drivers agreeing to ply short distances are similar to dinosaurs – an extinct entity. In case you want to avoid these autos then get ready for a sweat-sauna session and full body massage - Welcome to the choke-a-block local trains! This royal treatment is complemented by generous doses of aroma therapy emanating from arm pits around smelling as alluring as onions stuffed in corpses. 


Imagine all this drama just to reach our destination. And then come back again! Even cattle are treated with more respect. 


To add to these woes - salaries hike lesser than inflation rate; Inflation always on the rise akin to corruption; Corruption as rampant as our population; Population growth as menacing as news channels; Breaking News and sensationalism replacing lively debates and factual reports; Entertainment scarified at the altar’s of TRP’s; Reservations strangling people; People over burdened by ever rising EMI’s; Petrol threatening to score a century before Sachin achieves his ton of centuries. I think I can go on and on and on. 


Give us back our right to being a Common Man, our right to freedom; to live it oblivious of any inhibitions and as we want it to be. The only way to get all this back, I guess, is by revolting and expressing our concern. It won’t be long until the citizen revolts and movements that we have witnessed in past few months (against corruption) will transform into a revolution; and we will have more revolutions in the near future for all kinds of issues. There will be more protests, morchas, Facebook and Twitter inundated with social messages; More Ram Lila maidans, Draft bills, discussions on each acts in bills, framing laws, negotiations with the government on it! Phew! I have a serious concern here, if the civil society is to draft bills and laws then why do we have to elect governments to do the same job. Serious productivity issues ;) 

Nevertheless Revolution is inevitable! Till then go with the song… 

Sadda haq, Aithe Rakh!

This is my article published on the website of magazine “The Youth Express”