I was a huge fan of Shaktimaan. I hardly missed any episode.. He was superhuman. His mode of transport was a tornado. He was our saviour against 'Tamraj Kilwish'. He could bring Geeta Biswas back from death. He could do anything. ( For those, who now find it embarrassing to admit that they once likedsomething as crappy as Shaktimaan, replace Shaktimaan with Batman, Geeta Biswas with Katie Holmes,or better Monica Belluchi ( don' t try to find a connection, c'mon, the idea is just to feel better)).
Alas! He wasn't for real.
A friend of mine shared an amazing video with me today. It's about Indrajit, son of a farmer who fought all odds to become an IAS officer. He is from Jharkhand.( I sense raised eyebrows, relax, this post is not about Jharkhand). We live in a nation where the majority population is underprivileged. Our newspapers are occupied with news of cobbler's son getting into IIT, farmer's daughter making it to IAS ( hypothetical cases, just for gender equality), TTE breaking into Indian cricket team, going on to become a world cup winning captain. The present superhero of our nation is a small-time Marathi poet's son.( damn, Sachin again, we can somehow relate everything to him. We love flaunting him to establish our superiority, we love showing him off. So Indianish). They, too are superhuman.
And yes,, they are for real.
It's thrilling to see people like Indrajit. (Watch the video, its so inspiring). It's not just a rags to riches story. It's about a fighting spirit, that is so inherent in our country. It's so easy to give up. It's about a superhuman effort. About a will to change destiny, realising a dream. Our nation is so surplus of these people. Our much criticized examination system must be credited for it. It might be having several faults. Often, criminalized for increasing pressure on student( I find this an imported argument, underprivileged kids in Indian villages aren't as Chicken hearted, like in some more developed countries, they face something worse than exams everyday in life), but at-least it provides an even ground in terms of evaluation.
While these superhumans may not be as celebrated as Shaktimaan or Batman (Monica Belluchi still lingering), they aren't any less inspiring. While Shaktimaan and Batman only entertain us, they teach us how to live with our heads held high. Will end now, feeling good about myself on writing this post, with an old cliché, "Where there is a will there is a way".
