India/Bharat
India, that is Bharat, should focus on uplifting its poor rather than hiding them or scrimmaging over its name
I could start with what William Shakespeare said about a name but I’m sure that’s been done before. Let’s try something different. What is a name? A name is our first identity, our introduction to the world, it’s how we are addressed/called/referred to. Understandably, we are attached to names, it’s personal, and we are emotional about it. This week, the nation woke up to murmurings of India changing its name to Bharat. The trigger being President of India’s G20 invite being sent to heads of state calling her the ‘President of Bharat’. Over the years, many cities in India have shed their colonial nomenclature and chosen desi ones. Calcutta became Kolkata, Bombay became Mumbai, Madras became Chennai, and most recently, Allahabad became Prayagraj. But for a nation to discard its age-old moniker, was sure to stir things up. Much brouhaha followed — history lessons were handed out, debates ensued, shock or happiness ruled citizens’ reactions.
The moment I heard about rumours of a name change, it seemed more of a PR tactic, a case of optics, rather than a serious attempt to change the country’s name. “India, that is Bharat” can be used interchangeably as guaranteed by our Constitution. While using it to gain eyeballs is clever marketing, to formally change the name would be imprudent. The cost and energy involved in making this change is unnecessary and irrational. But as I said earlier, ahead of upcoming Lok Sabha polls, it’s masterful to make these little tweaks in official government communication, timed perfectly with a global event, in order to make a statement on the difference in the two identities — India and Bharat. But both have always meant the same, to be used as per our wish. To burden India with the colonial past is unfair. 70+ years of our independence never gave rise to this question, so why now? Have we accomplished everything there is as a nation to devote our efforts to this? Bharat/Bharatiya have already been in use; so, nothing new there either.
Instead of wasting time over the India vs Bharat debate, let’s actually look at what’s being glossed over instead. In the run-up to the G20 Summit in Delhi, the national capital was cleaned, mopped, decked up, and adorned to welcome world leaders, delegates, and guests. Roads were resurfaced, street lights were added, cheerful murals, light and sound shows made the capital look resplendent in its aura. While we argued India vs Bharat, the true state of our nation was being hidden with a fresh coat of paint. Where our slum-dwellers, flood victims, stray dogs became a nuisance, they were shunted out or plastic sheets were hung to shield them from the naked eye. For the three days, schools, colleges, offices, markets, and restaurants in certain parts of Delhi will be shut. There would be no food deliveries too. Who bears the cost of the loss? The USD 100 million dollar purportedly spent on the face-lift is unlikely to cover costs of business losses and human inconveniences. While the G20 Summit is underway, there will be no chaotic roads, swelling multitudes, or traffic snarls. Our international guests will roam smoothly on the capital’s roads, marvelling at Mahabharata and Ramayana murals, and enjoying the impressive lights illuminating every corner of the capital. These cosmetic changes however are fugacious. Come Monday, and much of the city will revert to its honking madness, the poor will return to squalid, make-shift abodes, having no part of their pathetic destinies changed by the G20, and life will go on as usual.
Poverty, though it exists, was made to vanish, if only for the few days of the G20 Summit. Tell me, wouldn’t it be absolutely glorious if that’s how the national capital looked on normal days too? That there’d actually be no flood victims or impoverished folk taking refuge under flyovers in the first place? That the slum areas were turned into respectable low-budget housing for the destitute. That we didn’t have to cruelly tie up the feet of helpless stray dogs forcibly kept away from their territory? How much could we have done with that USD 100 million kitty? It’s pointless to debate India vs Bharat — they are one and the same. But while the G20 Summit is on, remember that we showcase a Bharat that hides the real India. I hope that next time we host a global event, we won’t have to hide our penurious brothers and sisters. That they may too be living lives of dignity by then.
The writer is an author and media entrepreneur. Views expressed are personal
