THE JEWELS OF INDIA






I am a die-hard fan of Sachin Tendulkar. I admire him for his game – cricket. He is a legend and he inspires millions all over the world. He comes about as a gentleman and least controversial. Hence, he is so highly respected. But, then, when the nation – the particular political class – bestowed upon him the highest civilian honour of our nation – ‘Bharat Ratna’ – I did not feel very comfortable. There are so many ‘Jewels of India’… I say so many, that Sachin would have shone much brighter without a ‘Bharat Ratna’.

It’s my view.

Our country – of more than 1.3-billion people – doesn’t have sprinters of Usain Bolt’s class. Jamica, Usani Bolt’s country - doesn’t even have a population of 28 lakh! Incidentally, Usain’s original passion was cricket. But, he went on to become the greatest athlete – the fastest man on earth. No one has matched his track records, just as no one has Sachin’s cricket-records. So, if Jamica crowns Usain with her highest civilian honor, so be it.

Honours and recognitions come from ‘outside’. They are decided by mortals – people like you and me – for the reasons and logic best known to them. Nobel Committee has never felt Mahatma Gandhi deserved a Nobel Peace Prize and our own civilian-honour Committee has never felt Amitabh Bachchan deserves to be called a ‘Bharat Ratna’.

The Sun has already set on Usain Bolt’s carrer as sprinter. There was only so much he could achieve, only so fast he could run… and, yes, only so far he could strench with his signature style. The end was very sad… I could feel the pain in my heart, “He did not deserve this kind of end,” I thought when he collapsed on the tracks in pain!

But, that’s how the so-called external success is. What goes up has to come down. The mighty empires have come and gone… The greatest mornachs and worst dictators have never stayed there for too long… The richest men and women on earth have just perished… But, the Sun, the Moon and the Stars still rule above us… They still shine, up there, without craving for ‘honour’, without making a lot of fuss… They simply do what they are best at - shine!

Why is this need in us – the humans – to be honoured by the world as ‘Successful’ or as ‘A jewel of the Nation’. Do we feel in our bosoms that blazing truth – ‘I am a jewel of this nation’?


This summer, my friend, Amit, wanted me to help his 9-year-old son, Nirav, to open up before others. “Sir, he is a sweet intelligent boy,” Amit told me, “but, he seems a lot scared… He simply doesn’t open up. Please help him.”

Indeed, little Nirav was a sweet and intelligent boy, very talented. He loved magic tricks… He would make videos of his little magic-tricks and upload them on YouTube. He was good in sketching and drawing. That’s Nirav’s way of expressing himself… just as how Sachin expressed on cricket grounds, Usain did it on running tracks and Amitabh did – and still does -  it on silver screen. Yes, Nirav has difficulty opening up before others… But, he does it his way. Every child ‘is’ special… Every child is a ‘Jewel’…









So, you,me and our 9-year-old Nirav – yes, are we all not ‘Jewels of our nation’?

I was just thinking about all these, today. Tomorrow will be our 71st Independence Day.


GERALD D’CUNHA

Pic.: Nirav Makhija


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