Of Commercialisation and Cellular Silence Days
*This is not an advetorial

Hindustan Times.com is perhaps the best online portal any newspaper in India has...in my opinion (let's hope it matters!). Among other things, I love reading the various blogs and columns by various media personalities that appear in it. A recent entry by Pratik Kanjilal (publisher of The Little magazine that I know nothing about!) caught my attention.

It touches upon (who else but) Narendra Modi...the much revered as well as reviled CM of Gujrat. But the text of Kanjilal's story is how certain groups have started a movement inspired by the erstwhile 'Swadeshi' and are boycotting the heart of Modi's success - commercialisation.

They are boycotting products from various commmercial enterprises like Reliance and Airtel and asking people to follow suit. In yet another example of harnessing technology to propound a revolution, a certain Ranjan Kamath is using the internet to ask people to switch off their mobiles on 30 January to mark the assassination of Bapu...(atleast someone remembers his death anniversary..most people take note of his b'day on 2nd Oct, as it's a holiday...)

Apparently it has worked, with the Tata's slapping a legal notice that warns of a defamation suit on Kamath..But news of such an action can only work against the group because in my opinion, Kamath makes a point and very important one at that - we need to slow down and reduce the ever increasing commercialisation in our lives...Probably the recession may help...

Modi as PM or for that member Ratan Tata as India's Obama (I'm even a member of a FB group supporting Tata's Obamanisation!!)...Not quite...I think when we think of leaders we need to think of people who can step outside the commercialisation of it all and actually give us all a break...