Gujarat is reeling. While I sit
in my office and pen this down the surroundings outside wear a gloomy, deserted
cover owing to the Patel reservations agitation.
The gloom manages to engulf me as
well even though I have just returned from a laid back, all girls holiday which
is my usual half yearly escapade. Yes, I am dejected because unlike the Patels
and Gurjars no one fights for women like me. I could do with a reservation for
special stag entries in night clubs, a reservation for guaranteed lower berths
in trains since with passing age I am unable to climb up without hurting
myself. Some assistance here and there and some men standing for me would just
boost my morale up enough to sing praises to my motherland on days other than
National holidays.
Oh…that reminds me of our 68th
Independence Day which has just passed. The kind of Citizen I am ever so
passionate, loyal and go getter, I have high dreams for my country and I believe
in channelizing them. Like I mentioned above, the holiday, I was in Lucknow
then and this close friends’ home where I was staying had a very devoted maid
working for her. She was 10th
fail yet had very high aspirations. In one of my “we all are born equal” banter
with her she voiced her desire for formal employment. The activist in me
assimilated this information out speeding a Japanese express train and sent her
to meet one of my HR friends in the city for job. Well, the prospect must have
worked out because from the next day she stopped coming to work. My friend was
a bit surprised since this poor thing had never ever ignored her calls nor ever
given her a chance to complain and here she was, absent without information. That
night I woke up from a terrifying dream where this so far best friend of mine
was throwing my luggage out of her house shouting fury and this dame of hers is
standing in a corner with a sweet box in her hand. One can only imagine the relief
I breathed on catching my flight. So much for doing good to people and lowering
the employment rate of the nation. Since then this friend has called me twice
and both the times I have managed to miss her call expecting the worse.
As I step inside the elevator to
attend my daily morning meeting with the top guns of the hotel (they can
literally shoot by means of their candid conversations) it decides to stall at
the next floor. I have always had this phobia of getting stuck in an elevator
all by myself with no means of getting out. This time thankfully people are
standing out and they know I am in there. I am seething with fury. I think of
what a senior leader would do in such a circumstance. Instantly I am reminded
of Amit Shah (yeah yeah the same Gujarati politico mastermind). He faced a
similar predicament while on a visit to one of BJP’s headquarters. It was heard
the HQ had their grants scraped for next two months. Bingo!! What an impact. Seeking
encouragement, by the time I reached the meeting I had prepared my speech well
on how unacceptable it is for technology in a upper upscale hotel to betray
like this and the importance of regular checks and maintenances. My tone was
well rehearsed to make a visible impact aiming at throwing some weight around.
On finishing I looked around hoping to see some faces hung low in shame. Did I see
a smile there instead? “But madam, the elevator has a notice pasted saying out
of order”, blurts out a junior bloke. “Are you trying to tell me”, I argue, managing
to maintain the same air, “it is more about reducing our lead time in sorting
out issues. And that we still have not managed to do. Let’s begin the meeting.”
Needless to say my concentration
had timed out and the moment meeting was over I ran down the stairs to my
office and fetched this monthly horoscope out which had warned me about August
being a tricky month for Sagittarians and how it would be in their best
interest to keep their mouths zipped and ideas locked. True to being an overconfident Sagittarian I had
earlier trashed it maybe to read it now more carefully word by word only to
save the rest of the month.
