THE SKY ABOVE AND BLOOD BELOW

The circadian rhythm and semiotics of V.T. Station and Crawford marketplace are stilled by the staccato sounds of gunfire. Crowds are running helter skelter for cover, police jeeps and ambulances flit by aimlessly, their flashing lights ignoring the plaintive pleas and demands for help and succor. It started as a typical day for me and all others who commuted to work, gulped endless cups of tea and then packed up to return home, only on that day many did not come home but disintegrated, there one minute and an instant later were gone forever. The Islamist group’s 26/11 attack in Mumbai was not a random terror attack, but an act of war, part of a deliberate high risk campaign, carried out with military precision in response to India’s burgeoning economic prosperity, simmering issues like Kashmir, ties with Israel, strident Hinduvta overtones of political parties. Like a movie plot out of Oceans 12 these young terrorists came by boat and cast a net of fear over the city. The world is shattered with splinters of war and terrorism starting from the killing of Israeli athletes in Munich Olympics to the thrilling hostage saga at Entebbe it is now appearing regularly as milestones 9/11 Mumbai bomb blasts and now 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai etc.


Terrorism though prevalent in the old days has transformed itself into a new lethal product in keeping with our times. It is no longer confined to groups like Al-Queda, Hamas, Taliban, , and LTTE but has metamorphosed into several brands with religious, state, and Country overtones devoted to fight for what they believe is a holy crusade, a sort of Nihilistic enemy ready to sacrifice their lives in suicide missions for the cause! Terrorism happens when intolerance reaches epic proportions; the war inside the mind is more dangerous because it rages like a blazing fire spreading flames of hatred that may never be doused, as it is fanned by religious fanaticism; an aimless absurdity where young boys are indoctrinated into a crusade of sorts & made to sacrifice their lives in a mockery of martyrdom. More people have been killed by religion than wars / pestilence…….. This make us go back to the core of all religious beliefs where the doctrine of AHIMSA or non violence is propagated and everyone is taught not to cause hurt or take life & that killing is not right, the central principle of all faiths is to be kind and love mankind, yet this terrorism/ Jihad in the name of religion is an irony and takes us back to the dark ages. In this era of prosperity what lessons do these attacks teach us we do not know, will never know the reason except that death comes to all those who are born.


We are all aware that the only constant of history is change, yet this violent and visceral changeover along with the cataclysmically changing face of terror around the world has left the older generation gasping with fear. The old system has collapsed imploded, with E-commerce E-business and now Web- terror entering their lives leaving an insufficient “present’ and a bleak future to tread on for all citizens and netizens. India’s apathetic population has been jolted & is now fed up of this mis-governance and lackadaisical attitude. They don’t expect the Govt to be infallible, but the least they want is some sort of accountability. The pent up grief, rage, terror and passions have given vent to a public outcry causing the administration to tremble.

The violent spinning of terror scenarios in a vicious circle of hate, Babri Masjid, Godhra, Ceylon, World Trade Centre, Mumbai bomb blasts, and now the Taj / Oberoi 26/11 are etched in the collective mindscapes. The greatest irony of it all is that at a time when the whole world has switched to “unleaded fuel”, the bodies of the victims lay strewn all over riddled with “lead” so much care for the environment, while human life has no value.

We have been inured by so much of violence in our daily life that we can by now butter our toast while reading about gruesome murders, rape, train accidents, earthquakes, bomb blasts, tsunami’s and terrorist attacks. And ever since the huge massively pedestrian TV and Video have invaded our homes it seems you can’t turn it on without seeing some horrible and macabre tale of violence. Terrorism is the new reality show in town, depicting a negative externality where the action of a few terrorists can cause harm to a whole country. We can no longer take a train, bus or shop, eat-out, nor watch a movie without fear. The channel reporters feed off these shows quizzing the families of victims and then remorselessly switching across to Politicians, Actors, and other Prima Donnas who contrive to retch out profound sound bytes about how this is a great tragedy and steps should be taken to prevent a recurrence and passing the buck till the cameras stop rolling. As usual empty rhetoric will be slowly replaced by the new opportunity this calamity bestows on the ossified administrative state machinery and other vulture organizations. Pretty soon security, surveillance will be the new buzzwords / flavor of the year with risk and disaster management software and courses taking centre stage of every meeting, discussion and seminar.

The naiveté of the public who seem to think that candlelit marches & protests will improve things or change the rot in the system is wishful thinking…. This stirring will eventually die out like a flickering candle and crumble when recessionary pressures of everyday life takes its toll on their emotions. The only way they can prevent a wanton amnesia, will be to tattoo the details and dates on the bodies of all the politicians and bureaucrats in true Ghajini-esque style as a grotesque memento to all those brave martyrs who laid down their lives in the skirmish and whose brave actions were never captured on camera or celluloid.

As I watched the smoke billowing from the dome of the Taj, silhouetting the spires of the south Bombay skyline, accentuating the age old culture of the city, hotel, and the length of its history, I realized that the days of boozy, carefree dinners and gleeful chatter in five star restaurants are over. One could visualize the crimson sky through the blood splattered wind shields and spectacles …………the destruction and desolation of the opulent landscape....