I always feel fortunate to have been a part of a society full of exceptional people. But, I always feel unfortunate that this society is being driven by the philosophy of elitism. This philosophy is the root cause of the situation India is facing today, despite producing close to three thousand
branded graduates called IITians. These graduates are considered exceptionally talented and, no doubt, they are. These most-sought-after bachelors of India are expected to be nation's saviours, by everyone in the outside world. Unfortunately, very few of these IIT graduates, most of whom belong to middle-class and lower-middle class, are able to keep themselves off from the wave of elitism.
Elitism, as it is in kgp
I originally started thinking from what i've seen in IIT KGP- the elitism here is the root of a number of problems. A general extrapolation of this leads to what the nation is facing today. I'll focus on my campus only, in this blog. Because, smaller units can be easily corrected.
We have two great fests in our institute. Initially, there used to be just one grand fest called Spring Fest. The second one caught up fast. There was an initial struggle between the elder fest and even denial of equal status to the younger one. But, the whole struggle was of creating an elite class. A class of people who claim to belong to a higher race and who have every right to look down upon others as ordinary creatures. What i've found as a very sad feature of the campus life here, over the years, is the rise of another class which has grown up as a complete denial to this elite class. They dont participate in any of the events, they dont even touch the periphery of the circle of influence of the self-proclaimed elites, they dont go to any of the fests- in short, they have created their own world- the virtual world. They are no less intelligent than anyone, they are no less capable than the socially active class. But, just as a reaction to elitism, just as a denial to the existence of the self-proclaimed gods, there is a large section who have become completely ignorant about the mainstream activities in the campus. No wonder there is a huge bunch of people in the campus who dont even know who is the VP, the G Secs and dont even care about that.
The making of the elite class
Coming back to the philosophy of elitism, the top-brass among the propogators of this school of thought believe that organising a fest bestows you with divine powers! It just reminds me of the 'Dark Age' when kings used to proclaim divine powers in a similar fashion. All these fest folks are true rulers in this campus. You dont even qualify to stand in elections if you dont have these divine powers! This school of thought is so well-fabricated that its really difficult to raise a slogan against that. At least i've not heard any, during my stay of five years in the campus.
Dinners worth at least a lac are arranged in five-star hotels to maintain the difference between the general class and the top brass. In a place where societies and publications find it difficult to survive due to shortage of funds, the amount spent lavishly on these treats works wonders in maintaining the elitism. Well, the way it's presented and propagated, it always seemed to me that these people who manage such big fests, must be next to god and deserve to be worshipped. Who knows, you 'll have some quick benefits- some coupons, some vouchers, as a result of that! At least, that's what gods are supposed to provide, in Indian mythology.
While i was into organising Manzar, i faced a lot of silly questions and ironically, most of them were put up very seriously. The first one being, by a very responsible office-bearer of Technology Students' Gymkhana, how can you people organise this fest- its impossible- just one of you have worked with the big fests. Answer- i need not tell.
Next, do you really think there is any scope for more fests. Answer- do you really know how many S Coms and Heads are created each year during placement season? Do you really know why? Do you really know how much frust kgp junta is, with a dull campus life?
But, they wont let you do it easily. IIT B has got its own dramatics festival. But, in IIT KGP, it comes at the cost of elitism, my friend.
Next, what do you wish to prove by doing this? ....that organising fests is a simple thing. With brand-IIT behind you, with at least a hundred people per batch, who wished to be a part of the fests(and, in the end, they compensate it with faking CVs), its just about the start.
The elite class at the local level
There is another elite class, which is working here to maintain its status, at the local level. The bosses in the hall do exactly what the VP and the G Secs do at the institute level. They assume themselves to be the rulers... they assume themselves to be above everyone. Where one should actually assume the role of serving the student community, by getting one degree lower in attitude, the tradition, here in KGP, is different. Many a times i've confronted the ugly face of this elitism. Seniority doesnt matter, what you wish to say, doesnt matter... all that matters is the post behind the person next to you. All these faces put to shame the brand-IIT, as it is perceived by the world outside. I've seen this elitist mentality move beyond even the basics of humanity. In a place like this, where most of us usually dont care to look outside our small personal orbits, i still live with the dream of putting an end to this elitism. I live with the dream of a world without GODs of small things.
(I 've seen many good people here who 've been a part of the system and worked as exceptions. I request them to consider themselves outside the radius of this criticism.)
