I am quite disillusioned and even piqued by the type of people picked by the government for awards. There have been controversies galore about the nominations of the Padma award for decades now. Dr Rajendra Prasad wanted to reward the nurse who looked after him through his illness by the Padma award and mind you she was.
Saif Ali Khan, indicted in multiple cases, like the black buck killing and also the duty evasion case, was also awarded.
Notwithstanding the fact that I have nothing personal against this Khan, I made an RTI application on the procedure followed for short listing for the Padma Award. Of course my angst is more against the government which is making a mockery of these awards than against the Khan, who probably does not even know what he has got.
My making such an application should not give the reader an impression that he was the only person who did not merit the accolade. There are many more. Then why did I choose to writ against the Khan. Well I do not have any sound reason for this, other than he is one undeserving person who I was familiar with and I was precious sure and aware of his indictment in some cases.
But of course, this is true, that these actors are rewarded enough in terms of money and fame that another award from the government would do them hardly any good. Clearly they don’t seek the type of recognition that such awards are associated with. The government needs to clarify to the people what these awards stand for. A committee of peripatetic bureaucrats is hardly the right constitution for recognizing musical, academic, theatrical or any other fine arts talent. Chronically, bidding time in one ministry for a more lucrative tenure in another, perhaps makes them most inappropriate for making such selection. Being themselves, a product of a system that is bereft of any mechanism of recognizing much less nurturing talent, how does one expect them to do this for others.
I do recall, once, while I stood in a queue for check in at the Jet Airways counter, I saw a diminutive man sneak into the queue and ask the counter agent, if the flight could be delayed as Mr Saif Ali Khan accompanied by Ms Kapoor were trapped in traffic. Well to the dismay of this handy man of the Khan, I had overheard him. While Jet Airways seemed inclined to make this small gesture to a big celebrity, I threatened to de-plane if the flight was unduly delayed for any such reason. Since my de-planing and consequent de-manifesting and bag offloading would have delayed the flight much more than the courtesy waiting for the star, good sense prevailed on the airline which confirmed to me that no such special treatment would be extended.
For those who saw the last Filmfare award ceremony, would occasion with me to agree, that the onstage buffoonery of the duo - SRK and SAK – was pitiable. The “chote nawab” joke was really in cheap taste. It bemuses me completely, to imagine how a man who operates at a low mental level that he does, and is involved in criminal cases that he is, be found deserving of such national honours.
Saif Ali Khan, indicted in multiple cases, like the black buck killing and also the duty evasion case, was also awarded.
Notwithstanding the fact that I have nothing personal against this Khan, I made an RTI application on the procedure followed for short listing for the Padma Award. Of course my angst is more against the government which is making a mockery of these awards than against the Khan, who probably does not even know what he has got.
My making such an application should not give the reader an impression that he was the only person who did not merit the accolade. There are many more. Then why did I choose to writ against the Khan. Well I do not have any sound reason for this, other than he is one undeserving person who I was familiar with and I was precious sure and aware of his indictment in some cases.
But of course, this is true, that these actors are rewarded enough in terms of money and fame that another award from the government would do them hardly any good. Clearly they don’t seek the type of recognition that such awards are associated with. The government needs to clarify to the people what these awards stand for. A committee of peripatetic bureaucrats is hardly the right constitution for recognizing musical, academic, theatrical or any other fine arts talent. Chronically, bidding time in one ministry for a more lucrative tenure in another, perhaps makes them most inappropriate for making such selection. Being themselves, a product of a system that is bereft of any mechanism of recognizing much less nurturing talent, how does one expect them to do this for others.
I do recall, once, while I stood in a queue for check in at the Jet Airways counter, I saw a diminutive man sneak into the queue and ask the counter agent, if the flight could be delayed as Mr Saif Ali Khan accompanied by Ms Kapoor were trapped in traffic. Well to the dismay of this handy man of the Khan, I had overheard him. While Jet Airways seemed inclined to make this small gesture to a big celebrity, I threatened to de-plane if the flight was unduly delayed for any such reason. Since my de-planing and consequent de-manifesting and bag offloading would have delayed the flight much more than the courtesy waiting for the star, good sense prevailed on the airline which confirmed to me that no such special treatment would be extended.
For those who saw the last Filmfare award ceremony, would occasion with me to agree, that the onstage buffoonery of the duo - SRK and SAK – was pitiable. The “chote nawab” joke was really in cheap taste. It bemuses me completely, to imagine how a man who operates at a low mental level that he does, and is involved in criminal cases that he is, be found deserving of such national honours.
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