How briskly has India erupted with unmitigated Joi de Vivre, bursting pride, and a palpable sigh of relief due to the 2 Olympic medals won by 2 gritty girls, Sakshi Malik and P.V. Sindhu; powerhouses of talent and excellence! Kudos to them. No accolades can do justice to their achievements and no praise is high enough.
Sakshi and Sindhu have become the harbinger of change in Indian sports, a double badge of honour for a medal-starved nation, an adept answer to trolls, a slap on the face of a socialite mouthing nasty comments; in all S&S are the newly anointed symbols of new age women power and empowerment.
There has been a deluge of eulogies for these 2 girls in print and social media. Several touching poems doing rounds, too many jokes ridiculing that no Indian male was capable of winning an Olympic medal while the girls won two! Ahem! Chin up, collars high, smug smile intact, we GLOAT...It's ladies' day out!
Did I say GLOATING?
Now, that's one emotion that's singularly off-putting. How quickly we jump to own up the moments of glory of those who struggled and toiled for years! How insanely hooked up we are about the achievements of women as opposed to men! Giving credit to them as dedicated, brilliant sportspersons (gender immaterial) is something our skewed mindsets and injured egos can never fathom or accept. Every victory has to be dissected on the flawed parameters of gender, caste or region. It is such a grave disservice to those who spend years fighting the crippling, unfavourable sports environment in India. How well do we really follow their journey? How tuned are we to their twists and turns, highs and lows? We only acknowledge them in their moments of glory, (as in Sakshi and Sindhu's case) or in their moments of ignominy (Narsingh Yadav).The rest of the time, we are busy following cricket or football.
Crazy times are these - when a simple, sweet win metamorphoses into a complex, giant phenomenon, open to public dissection and scrutiny.
How about just clapping and bowing, in silence, respect and awe?
Because some glories are only meant to be savoured...not brandished as a weapon.
