Pet Peeves And Building Our National Character

Apurva Purohit, group President of Jagran Prakashan Ltd who also happens to be the author of the national bestselling book 'Lady, You’re not a Man – the Adventures of a Woman at Work', published in 2013, shares her pet peeves which she hopes would help in building 'Our National Character'.

I have just returned from the long weekend break which many of you, I am sure too took advantage of. The resort was lovely, the staff outstanding, the weather supportive and the natural beauty simply breathtaking. The only thing we didn’t contend with is that along with us, several generations of the Khannas and the Joshis and the Shahs had also decided to maximise on this opportunity.

So the hotel became the scene of extended family reunions where brothers bonded with brothers-in-law over beer and single malt and sister-in-laws giggled through various spa therapies and grandmothers coddled offspring’s offsprings and iPhones on their laps with amazing dexterity!

Now having been brought up on ‘Hum Aapke Hain Kaun’ and its epic predecessor ‘Waqt’, I am all in favour of, and indeed very fond of the Happy and Huge Indian Family, as long as it is someone else’s, but I do have some pet peeves which I would like to enumerate and request these HHIFs to avoid, so that we can all build, as our very practical PM would say ‘Our National Character'.

Briefly, they are:

Shrieking Kids

Why do Indian parents allow their kids to shriek so much? Don’t they know a shrieking kid invariably grows up to be a shrieking adult who will continuously honk the horn in bumper to bumper traffic and play “Ye Duniya Pital Di” at the highest decibel level? Why so much noise? Why watch your kid throw a screaming fit and smile indulgently rather than give him one tight slap? Imagine if we just ensured our kids were better behaved? Think of the planet and the reduction in noise pollution!

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Continuous Updates On Facebook & Twitter

'My doll with my favourite woman; my mother #familiesarethegreatest. Overweight and very pink baby in overweight and very green grandma’s lap next to the pool. 'Thank you for being by my side for the last 15 years' #mypartnermywife #notlookingadayolder Click: Woman of indeterminate age wearing her idea of ‘resort wear’, tight shorts and a frilly off the shoulder top.

What is it with us? Why can’t we be in the moment? Maybe look at the birds around us which for a change are not pigeons or crows. Gaze at the softly flowing river. Enjoy the serenity of the here and now. I thought that is why we go on holidays? To disconnect from the real world for a brief respite?

Personal Space

It should be made mandatory that no human being will impinge on the 2.5-foot radius around another human being! At airports, at buffets, at marriages, wherever we stand in queues, we want to stick like a leech to the person in front of us! Why bhaiyya? Do you want to smell my perfume? Do you want to cuddle up with me? Does it give you a sense of security to practically hold onto my pallu? Do you see in me your long-lost-at-Kumbh-Mela-sister?

Along with building toilets and teaching our sons to respect women and manufacturing what is currently being imported and not throwing garbage outside our homes , if we could add the above three points, I am confident it would go a long way in building a national character which we could all be proud of! Please.

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