After the day of voting at Mumbai, we saw may celebrities sporting the inked finger and flashing it to the press and media, but I was quite shocked at Amitabh, Abhishek and gracious Aishwarya Bachchan brandishing their middle fingers for the benefit of photographers after they voted during the Mumbai polls. The world knows exactly what it means, even 12-year-olds even in Asian countries like India and China. And I suspect the teen in Bangladesh and Pakistan too understand this.
It was neither needed nor expected, even for a noble cause like voting and nor was it can be considered decent. Soon other actors followed suit and there was a sizeable stream of Bollywood's glitterati making the obscene gesture. With final round of voting due tomorrow, I won't be surprised if hordes of young Indian voters, impressed by the finger flaunting celebrities, come out of polling booths across the country showing their middle fingers.
Some actors, though, fully aware of the significance of holding up their middle fingers all their fingers, more gracefully and correctly.
While I have don’t have anything against the gesture as such, or any other thing that people do privately, but I believe people seem to have taken offence at someone like the Big B and Aishwarya getting so rude, that too publicly. Few things or acts, however trendy and rebellious or youthful and iconic, are just not cool, especially when you subject others to it. It’s like smoking or using the big F word.
In Western cultures, says Wikipedia, In many Western countries extending only the middle finger and sometimes along with the thumb of the same hand, is an offensive and obscene gesture, colloquially known as "flipping a bird" or "Flipping someone off." In some cultures, the middle finger is used as an index, to point things out.Believed by leading experts to be originated in North America.
Can we please have a less vulgar and more modern way of showing the support to voting now? So that there's no ink on our fingers and there's no need for Big B and Abhi-Aish to flash The Finger at us first thing in the morning when the go to vote next time?
6 comments:
So long as, the middle finger motivates people to flip the politicians, I think the objective of polling is achieved in Democracy. :)
Hey buddy I don't agree, the bachhans are very right in showing the finger it's the day when every voter shows politicians his middle finger, don't be offended the finger was shown to Indian politicians, hope you too excercised your right of showing your middle finger, if you missed the opportunity don't worry astrologers are pridicting that the day will again come in a year or so, you may be getting the chance soon
@ Anurag & @ Prat: Agree with you both provided the gesture is only for politicians :)
Looking beyond; the way Bachchans have always managed media and publicity, it is hard to believe that this act is just a reflection of enthusiasm of some innocent indians happy about excercising their only designated power under democracy. To me it seems more a sign to some highly designated people like the Gandhis and Mayawati etc. But one thing is sure, whatever Bachchans do, even not so 'shaaleen', they do it in style!!!
May be its too microscopic and not agreed upon by many, but in this age where everything could be bought and managed with professional help, I am not sure why only Bachchans got the mark of Democracy on their Middle fingers instead of the Index finger as in case of a common man!
@ Himanshu: Gud observation n funny question. Although CEC has set up an inquiry on this !!
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