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Renuka Shahane and her musings on Facebook have become more and more the voice of reason in this chaotic world we live in. Politicians of the world are too busy fighting among themselves to really give reality a thought and the games they play are way too easy for us to look through.

Her latest rant on Facebook will make you think again whom to put your trust in, politicians, celebrities, or neither of them.

Sometime lines for people with short term memory only:

Feb 3, 2008: Mrs Jaya Bachchan asks, “Who is Raj Thakeray?” after MNS targets North Indians in Mumbai

Sep 8, 2008: MNS targets Mr Bachchan for being brand ambassador of UP & setting up a girls school there instead of Maharashtra. Mrs Bachchan makes a sarcastic comment about speaking in Hindi at a music launch of a film.

MNS starts a stir against the release of Mr Bachchan’s “The Last Lear”.

By that time Mrs Bachchan had come to know who Raj Thakeray was and therefore apologises for her remark.

Cut to

Oct 2016: Mr Bachchan receives a personally sketched portrait by Raj Thakeray for his birthday & he gifts a watch to Raj Thakeray’s son.

Somewhere along the way Mr Bachchan became brand ambassador for Gujarat

There were no protests by the MNS

Guess Marathi-Gujarati bhai bhai but UP-Marathi not bhai-bhai!

Now Karan Johar.

Oct 2009: MNS protests use of ‘Bombay’ instead of ‘Mumbai’ in Wake Up Sid

Karan apologises saying, ” It was a genuine mistake on our part. Henceforth we will use Mumbai instead of Bombay”

MNS protests withdrawn.

Bombay Times was being printed then & now

MNS doesn’t protest.

Cut to

Sep 2016: MNS protests against the casting of a Pakistani actor in “Ae Dil Hai Mushkil” in solidarity with the martyred jawaans of the horrendous Uri attack

Flashback

26/11/2008: The dastardly Mumbai attacks. Many civilians killed by Pakistani terrorists

Tukaram Ombale martyred while capturing Kasab live.

Many defence personnel are martyred.

Many Pakistani artists, singers, writers work here & go back.

2nd Jan 2016: Many defence personnel martyred at Pathankot

March 2016: Kapoor & Sons is released & becomes a hit. It has Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in it.

MNS does not protest

The present:

18/10/2016: Karan Johar apologises saying he will never cast a Pakistani actor again

Exhibitors of single screens still will not show the film

Our Home Minister says that it is business as usual in the country. Visas will be given to Pakistanis to come here & work. There will be no ban on Pakistani actors on the part of the Central Govt

MNS does not protest our Govt’s decision.

Karan Johar is to meet the Home Minister today.

Flash forward:

Karan Johar gets a portrait personally sketched by Raj Thakeray?

The present again:

After winning 3 wars at home, helping to win many in other lands, winning thousands of battles & skirmishes, being martyred in huge numbers, helping in any civil unrests, riots, natural disasters, helping all Indians irrespective of caste, race, language, gender; at last our Army has supposedly reached an International status at par with the Israeli Army that is protecting people of a land approximately 1/4th of our square kilometres and 1/100th of our complexity!!!

I thought our Army was always one of the best in the World.

Meanwhile, the tu, tu, main, main over surgical strikes continue between the Congress & the BJP.

The political squabbling & posturing continues.

We might as Indian citizens be able to put our differences aside & be able to keep India above Art & Sports but will our politicians be able to keep India above Politics?

I don’t think so.

I don’t think they will ever be able to practice what they preach!

Politics is, after all, a game, played with real people on the grand chessboard.

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