my very own kaala bandar

so the kaala bandar..its the biggest reason why nobody i know liked the delhi 6. because it was unrealistic, unnecessary and didnt fit into the scheme of things. but i dont agree. i thought it was the best, most apt metaphor for the way we are as a country. as a society that plays on, and acts only on fear.

iv seen it only a million times before. fear is the single motivator for all our actions in society. everything is governed by fear. whether its a decision about whom to marry, how to get married, whom to invite, the level of satisfaction one gets from ones relationships, who one chooses to be friends with, what one does in an unhappy marriage, what to do for a living, our religion, beliefs, value systems, when one chooses to flower into an independent self-thinking individual. sometimes people go through entire lives without discovering that feeling of liberation. all because of the kaala bandar.

hahaha..so this kaala bandar is some ridiculous monkey-skin-clad menace thats making trouble all over delhi 6. but this stupid hairy menace makes a real point through the story. part of it is a figment of everybodys imagination. through peoples fears, prejudices and emotions, this silly monkey takes all kinds of forms, new accessories getting added to his demeanor everytme someone thinks they see him. or should i say it?

everybodys personal fears begin to get projected on this mysterious creature which in reality, nobody has seen :). situations and events in the movie seemed so real to me. we live in a society thats too afraid to think for themselves. a society that will believe anything it is told, including the fact that a "kaala bandar" with thick black fur and long fingernails and A CIRCUIT FLASHING RED AND GREEN LIGHTS embedded in his chest (!!) is creating havoc around the neighbourhood. kaala bandar to me symbolised all the things, the masks, the blinders people use to cover their eyes from the truth. the real shitty state their lives are reduced to. because its so much easier to spin an interesting fantastic story, than look within and face the truth about themselves. the truth that questions their religion, their social eliefs, their "customs" -- many of whch have been foloowed blindly without anyone stopping to think if theyre even relevant or applicable anymore.

delhi 6 was a movie that held a mirror up to the times and situations i live through everyday. in big ways and small im faced by these fears. our very own personal kaala bandar, that is stuck inside of us. and makes us play the tricks he wishes us to. whether its an irrational "tradition", or a habit that has been glorified as a social custom that must never be challenged. this kaala bandar is always dancing around, and sometimes we end up dancing to his tunes. and most often it makes us pull the blinds over our eyes, and keeps us away form the truth. which would be a harder path to take, but definitely a more liberating one.

theres a kaala bandar inside of me too. he stops me from being who i am, when im contended with a situation that will judge/question who i really am. he cautions me when i dont need to be. he makes me think things i dont need to. he slowly tries to convert the free spirit inside me, into a fearful and timid being. he tries over and over to silence my brain that works overtime and likes to think for itself.

how long will it be before my own little kaala bandar wins this battle?
how long will we continue to cover our eyes and forget whats right in front of us?
how long will we continue to swim around in the shit, deluding ourselves that our actions and thoughts can miraculously turn the CRAP into perfumed flowers?
how long will we be slaves to tradition, time, age old beliefs and ways to do things?
how long will we let the kaala bandar inside each of us dictate so much of our everyday existence?
how long will we continue to let our brains and capacity to think freely rot and decay inside?