The Ranjini Haridas Phenomenon

Ranjini
Image Courtesy: Google

Miss. Ranjini Haridas, you are not alone.

No, you are not, any more.

There has been serious gossip mongering against Raniji Haridas, the TV anchor in Kerala. Although, media is a major culprit in bring about cultural changes, positive and negative, some symbols, or icons keep our minds engaged and give us food for talk. Always, a talk is positive act. The more we spend our time to talk during the power-cut time, the more our minds grow. By the way, did I mention to my international readers that in Kerala we have a standard power-cut half an hour each night and one hour during daytime? Almost like the District 12 in The Hunger Games.

In this turmoil of lacks and shortcomings, Ranjini Haridas rose into conversations as a television anchor. She was the witch of Portobello in Kerala and many a cultural dictators fancies of burning her on a stake. Reason? She is ‘arrogant’.

If someone says, Oprah Winfrey is arrogant on TV; one can only suppose that the person who made that comment is a naïve. The show demands you to appear in one way or the other and people misunderstand you to be that very person you see on the picture box.

Never before, had such a mass hysteria about an anchor in Kerala come to my notice. Perhaps, the society is growing back into naivety or intolerance is the latest currency of regionalism. Either way, it sounds dangerous. If you can criticize Ranjini Haridas, you can earn your prominence in cultural meetings and local teashops. Ranjini stands as a stalwart threat to the native culture. In some people’s eyes, she is a comet that appeared in the sky to ravish their Garden of Eden. When Ranjini wears a sari, it becomes a controversy. Her laughter is controversial. Her language is too provocative, because according some people; she does not know much Malayalam and resorts to English during her shows, which flies across the globe to the households of NRIs and people of other nationalities.

The list of Ranjini Haridas’ 'sins' is long. However, here is a thought provoking comment made by one of my readers, here in The Indian Commentator. Perhaps the person does not want to reveal name on a widely circulated platform like this blog. So let us call the person Mr. Anonymous.

Mr. Anonymous made this comment on the sports article titled “S. Sreesanth will come out?” The comment touches many issues of national and local merit and is remarkable in its brevity as well, considering how much in depth analysis the writer has done with the limited space.

Below are his words. You can also read it here. "Anonymous Said..."

Image Courtesy: Moddb.com

I may agree with the conclusion and enjoyed the bitter satire also. But I have some differences with some ideas expressed, and also how Malayalies responded. Except Shashi Tharoor, and Srishanth's family, nobody openely or indirectly supported him during his bad days, because it is in the blood of malayalies to feel jealous in the success of others. We never encourage individual success, whether it is Srisanth, or Prithviraj or Ranjini Haridas. These are the common targets of the virtual malayali, see FB posts about them. What they did wrong? They know what they are, what they want, how they can get it and that they have the ability to get it. It means Confidence, but Mallus( of course not Malayalis) consider it arrogance. I didn't react to the arrest od Sreesanth in the beginning time, but had doubt. Still I had doubt. I don't know whether he is engaged in the crime. If yes, hang him, no objection. But criticising him for conducting Thulabhara in Guruvayour, for wearing some "sacred threads" in the hand, and criticising his mother for conducting poojas when he played in the matches are irrelevant things to be talked about. As if, none of the Malayalis go to Guruvayur and do Thulabhara. Those who come to Guruvayur are from other planets. As if those who visit Shabari Mala are not at all Mallus. As is the one who conduct Poomoodal is not a Progressive Politician, as if the Mosque which is built for honouring the hair of the prophet is not in Kerala. If these things are done by the virtual Mallu alone, it can be forgiven, but the so called "revamped" police also doing the same thing. Evidences given to the press: Condom( as if having safe sex is bad), Ladies were with him ( as if it is a punishable crime to be with ladies), laptop ( as if only Sreesanth is having it), Smartphone( as if he is the one who invented it), money( he is a beggar arrested from the street), and hotel rooms allegedly booked in metros( oh my god) and he is said to have connections with the all powerful Davood (The Maharastrian Messiah of Indian cricket Almighty Sarath Pawar haven't even heard of Davood), and that too without evidence. So, Sreesanth is arrested, and then "evidences" are found, not in the other way, that too the POlice have been observing Sreesanth and his company from the beginning of the IPL( and now they got condoms, so what, you may say). And tell me, if I feel Sreesanth is a scapegoat, is it wrong?