The Waakching Diary — On Welcoming the New Year

This New Year started with a bang, so to say, and with a few uningdaba-taningdaba incidents. While many of us could not even afford a packet of bamboola to welcome the New Year, some exceeded their limit of afao saaba or gupthi touba by exploding bombs to mark the celebration. In the same breath, we can add it’s not a new thing.

Well, it is perhaps a matter of pride to admit that ours is a land where a pre-nursery kid can even distinguish the sound of a bomb from that of a bamboola. Again, it won’t be too far when we can buy bombs from a grocery store and use them anywhere, anytime for our own personal reasons; logical or illogical, it matters not. So, you had a tiff with Tomba or Chaoba or when someone said no to a request or command or whatsoever, hurl a bomb—that’s the best ever way to settle a score. And that’s a lesson our society has been teaching us. Who needs a ‘reasonable’ reason in our leiraks and leikais?

New Year, Old Craps

Anouba chahi, anouba manglaan and anouba wakhalon sound so good to listen to or read about, but when it comes to the reality in our state, one should clearly hear it and read between the lines. Comfortably numb; we have started expecting any untoward incident with this deep-rooted psyche that we are meant to endure all these bullshits all around the year.

We are being told and convinced that we are the citizens of the largest democracy yet it is almost like a pipedream when it comes to our rights. Why is there a black maikhal when it comes to exercising our democratic rights in our homeland? Why should we be immune to any unfavourable incident that happens every now and then? Bans, restrictions and more bans and restriction—sometimes the prevailing claustrophobia is too hard on our senses.

To cite the simplest example, if you go out with friends in the late evenings, you get frisked mandatorily by the security personnel. There is no implication that we only want to go out in the evenings but you get what I mean; after all we are the united people of the united land. And whether you have proper documents for your vehicle or not, you will be charged, at least a Yaangkhei or Chaama note for their allowances, read their cha thaknaba. I wonder if we should start carrying cha in a Moreh flask to avoid giving cha-thaknaba sen to the thirsty lots, eh?!

Old Habits Die Hard

Paying bribes is a noble chatnabi in Manipur. The more you pay, the better you are and the higher post you get in the lone governmental jobs and the faster a task is completed. Well, which chatnabi are we referring to? Are we not the ones who have been promoting this chatnabi in the first place? What had started should come to an end. It’s the high time we re-look at the aged-old formula of economics’ demand and supply and restate this way: Where there isn’t any supply, demand will ultimately stop.

So, from this year onwards, let us start making some sense (not necessarily in a factory or some sort of an assembly line).

If you have proper documents for your vehicle, have the guts to tell a straight ‘No’, if they ask you for a Yaangkhei or Chaama-chapi note. If you are eligible for a particular post, never ever think about mortgaging your lou or ingkhol just to pay lacs to the ridiculously sounding ‘concerned authorities’.

It is the high time we continuously remind ourselves that this is our own homeland. We are not supposed to feel like an alien here. Why should we be afraid to loiter freely in our homeland? Why should we be scared to drive anywhere in our own city no matter the time of the day or night? Why should they have a price tag for a job opening that we are eligible for? Let us start questioning ourselves with such questions from time to time. It is easier said than done but again, there has to be an end and there has to be a new beginning. And the New Year is just the right time.

On other occasions, it is sheer stupidity to yell ‘Akhoigi ngamkhei kaiba yaaroi’ when we are busy building walls fencing ourselves away from our neighbours. All we need is a daily dose of sanity which is available at free of cost. When we talk about these issues, the list will be endless. A small beginning has the potential to make a big impact. Let this New Year enlighten us all and help us have our stand. Let our state rise from the slumber and shine.

Wishing all of you a very happy and sensible new year!

This article was published on 5 Jan 2013

The Numbing Waakching Episode

‘Waakching’ is considered one of the most romantic months in the entire year and a rejuvenating season for many literary aficionados too. I have read in poems and in prose books about ‘Waakchingi Ulen’ or ‘Waakchingi Nong’ and its literary reflections. Even during my confinement out of Manipur for all these years, I have ardently enjoyed a dream-trip of my mind somewhere near the Ningthi river listening to the sounds of silence and serenity after the Waakching drizzles. I have romanced with the raindrops, danced to the glory of a beautiful Waakchingi Purnima night albeit the sweet disturbance of the cuckoo birds. It has been a flabbergasting experience for me until the sounds of bombs intruded…

Just imagine, how would one feel if one’s dreams are interrupted or predictions are proved otherwise during the most romantic month of the year? Depressed, right? Exactly! I have never been this much depressed in my life. This is not done at all. 2012 is supposed to be a romantic year for everyone but the bloody bomb merchants and hooligans loitering everywhere in the State, wreaking havoc all around and terrorizing people, are a few pathetic reasons of my depression in such a lovely season.

I know now why ‘Ebenpok Emoinu’ is so unwilling to stay in the State. Perhaps, she has done the right thing by taking a long unplanned sabbatical. Who would anyway love to reside in one such place where you have to worry about an unclaimed bomb hanging at your gate or being thrown in your office? It’s such a gloomy situation there. It’s a nonsense versus null-sense battle between morons for some petty power to rule (not govern) the people.

The numb/dumb struck ‘micham’ are easily carried away by their retarded gimmicks meanwhile the intellectuals are struggling because of a severe logic-attack. (For your reference, logic-attack is a new terminology which means the numbing of the human logic. A unique syndrome of logic-attack is reluctance to fasten on the sanity belt or high chance of burning away the same. Non-medical researchers are yet to cure such a fatal disease. The after-effects of this social disease are still open to question.)

Dark nights, orphaned bombs (whose lousy parents claim no responsibility), tug-of-war among the political parties/candidates for the upcoming General Election are three main characteristics that mark this ongoing Waakching month. On the other side, the ‘Praja suumnaba kadar-fadar’ magnetic tricks such as allotting thika and special funds for feasts, cinemas or ‘out of the blue’ sudden developmental plans of each and every leikai etc. are serious chores for the ‘haabi-jaabi’ election agents of the respective kendras. Over the last few weeks, many homes might have been allotted free sacks of ‘meitaan’ and kilos of free rice or other basic commodities. It’s like a free-loot for some smart ‘khongbaan-chenba’ gangs. For those who are struggling for two meals a day this is perhaps the much awaited time when they are fed on free rice, booze and what not? They are feeding themselves for next five years to shout, yell and protest on the many unwanted incidents that can be easily forecast in a state like ours.

We the People (or should it be the Wee People?) are easily tricked and tipped by corrupted politicians. In advertising, it is exemplified as the art of selling comb to a bald man. You have to convince him at any cost to sell your product. It’s a trick, tactic or technique that always works wonders for the advertiser to convince and encourage that bald man to buy the product. The same case can be half-applied to what the philandering politicians are doing with us. They are taking our votes away promising us ‘never existing solutions’ and we are still ready to do that? The only related question that eats my mind every now and then is whether we are cheaper or unworthy than those lifeless brands? Can the political parties and candidates buy us so easily without any bargain? What the heck?!

Nevertheless, my mention of the art of selling a comb to a bald man was a mere example and I do not even remotely mean to imply that advertising is a philandering art of communication. But, all is damned! It’s quite a shame. I sincerely thought 2012 is going to be the most ‘Romantic’ year of the century but some shit-minded hooligans have left no stone unturned to prove me wrong.

It’s raining bombs in the State meanwhile the shootings for powerless Dark Night (s) (sans K) in Manipuri version have also started. The political parties, candidates and their supporters are all the while hosting comedy shows trying to cheer up the depressed, oppressed and suppressed people with fake (never meant to be kept) promises. Everything sounds so grungy to me. And amidst all these, the collective role played by Ema Manipur is that of a Lukokpi, Napangbi and Meettangbi.

Bhalo hey!

This article was published on 15 Jan 2011