Poor Abhishek!

U.P. government award for Abhishek reminds me of the Indian proverb, “Andha bante rewarian, phir phir apnon ko de” (blind man distributing sweets, gives them again and again to his own men). Mulayam Singh has given away the prestigious award again and again to Bachchans – Harivansh, Amitabh, Jaya and now Abhishek. And the Congress workers’ reaction to the event brings to mind the story of the Wolf and the Lamb. They are all the time looking for an excuse to beat the Bachchans – income tax, Jalsa, Big B’s goggles and now Abhishek’s award. There is no denying the fact that Abhishek may not be amongst the best deserving awardees, and he too graciously admits it. But that holds good for any award, including the planet’s most prestigious Nobel Peace Prize – Mahatma Gandhi never got it. It is always arguable whether the recipient of an award really deserves it. But no body ever blames the awardees for the honor bestowed on them, it would be utterly idiotic to do that. And this is exactly how the Congress workers have reacted to Abhishek’s award. Worse still, they went to the extent of indulging in the most barbaric behavior – beating Abhishek’s picture (in posters) with shoes. Unmindful of their mad action, the Congress workers have inadvertently helped Mulayam Singh government by diverting the public mind from criticizing it for the folly of picking up young Abhishek for the prize over much more qualified candidates, to their own condemnation for the ugly incident. The public memory may be short, but it is very sharp during elections, and Congress workers may have to pay a heavy price in the ensuing U.P. elections next year for their reprehensible behavior towards the rising young star Abhishek, who is winning public applause and fan-following with every new release. The Congress big bosses will be better off if they take timely damage control exercise by reprimanding their workers and apologizing on their behalf from Abhishek.

Tilak Rishi