Yes ... Chabbi Janvary again :)

So, if you wonder what is so special about this day, apart from the fact that it is the Republic Day of India, that I religiously try to write a post about this day every year – then let me clear a few doubts this ‘Chabbi Janvary’.

‘Chabbi janvary’ is how we pronounce ‘26 January’ in Punjabi. The first time I wrote the ‘Aa gayi Chabbi Janvary’ post (in 2006), it was just a post with a title which I thought sounded funny when written- it’s ok, now even I know that it aint funny. The second Year – well, I somehow just remembered that I had written a post at this time of the year, in the previous year – so, I titled it ‘Aa Gayi Chabbi Janvary firse’ (It’s 26 January again). The third year, I forgot to write on this day. I again remembered it in 2009, and titled the post as ‘Aa Gayi Chabbi janavary … is baar 2 saal baad’ (i.e. after 2 years). In 2010, I had again forgotten, but Amitesh reminded me of writing it .. only then it struck me that, people actually remember that I write a post on/about this day :D. The title of the post changed this year, in 2010. So, in 2011 I remembered and wrote it again and with a different title again.

So, 6 Years and 5 posts about 26 January and now comes the 6^th one. All of these previous posts were kind of ‘Status Update’ type of posts. This year, I want to be different. I do not want this one to be a status update kind of a post. There are enough of those already here. This 26 January let’s talk something different, let’s talk about India. The other day, I was coming back from office, and there was this advertisement on the radio which went something like this – A guy is talking about himself, and goes on to say that he had his plans after college that he will do his higher studies from some reputed University overseas, and then probably settle there. But, then he goes on to say that Life probably had other plans and he did a small mistake – he watched ‘Swades’- The Shahrukh Khan movie, and his whole Life changed after that. He decided that he will settle in India, and work for India in India (with the Swades music playing in the background… this one à http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIjyzuCZvtM&feature=related ). No, matter how hard I try – I get goose bumps every time I hear this advertisement or the Swades song for that matter.

Now, cut back to the Real Life. Honestly, how many of us ever think about going to the US/UK or for that matter some other developed country? It’s a general tendency, and I don’t blame anybody for wanting to go abroad – everybody dreams of a good life for himself and his family. Everyone is selfish. We all are here in this world once, and for just some 80 odd years. Why would you not want to spend those in some good place, where you get all the facilities, and where you have a good life. Nothing wrong in that. Why would I want to spend my life trying to cleanse a system, which we all, to a certain extent, agree is damaged beyond repair. Why would I want to swear at 20 people daily while coming back from office to home on the roads? Why would I want to curse some government officer for asking a bribe for doing his duty? Why would I want to make my blood boil after seeing statues of Elephants and some politician being erected with my hard earned money in the name of upliftment of backward classes? I mean, no one wants a life where he has to fight for even the basic necessities. It ain’t easy to live in a place where you have to fight daily with somebody, it aint easy to walk daily on a footpath which no one cares about, it ain’t easy to fight with corruption every day. It aint easy living here. It’s tough out here, and everybody is not strong enough. So, what we do is choose to not Live here anymore. You earn more, you spend more and you settle outside the country, sacrificing a few things (like family and your culture?) and in the bargain get a life which many people dream.

I have seen people willing to do anything and everything just to get their Passport stamped, such is the craze. Just yesterday, I met a school friend after about 2 years and the first thing he asked me was, ‘aur, Onsite ka kya scene hai?’  In the IT industry, everyone after 2 years experience thinks about going to onsite and earn some quick bucks. If you are lucky enough, your employer files for your green card, else you have earned some good money. There is a different psychology that is working out here. You go to Onsite, earn some good money in a short span of time, and if you are unlucky to be called back then you at least have the money to not crib about walking on the dirty footpath or fighting with that autowalla daily for Rs 5 or  put up with the tantrums of the greedy landlord. You can buy yourself a car, and a flat. You can live in a fake world of yours where you can go visit the Pubs on the weekends, and forget about which politician is looting you of how much and where. Why would somebody want to live in a country where the rate of inflation is much more than your salary increment? I would much rather earn in dollars, and then pray that the Rupee depreciates more.

Sometime back, there was an article I read somewhere, which talked about an NRI couple who after spending many years in the USA decided to return to India, where they thought Home is(was). Even though they had the money, they were at the end of the day living in somebody else’s country and were aliens there. They returned to India, and their experience after returning to India was nothing short of horrible. The couple could not cope up with the Life here. They could not live with the small day-to-day issues you have to face here. Such a horrible experience it was for them, that they decided to return back to the USA . The sophisticated NRI’s could not cope up with the Life of India and gave up. They retuned back and decided to never come back again. They made a compromise.

Now, why am I talking all this? No, I am not here trying to make a point, neither I am here trying to discourage anybody from going abroad. I am just trying to see it from the outside. And, I am no different from the crowd here. It’s a topic about which I can talk so much – but, I cannot take sides in this debate. I can and I do see both sides of the coin. It’s so easy to go away, but at the same time it is so difficult too. After all, if it was so easy – no one would have stayed back. And, Anna Hazare would have probably be running a Marathon and getting into Record books.