Streams Extremes : Pride and Prejudice

An education system that does not teach the value of art, poetry, literature, people and society can never harbor leaders...

Recently I watched the much-hyped movie "Yeh Jawani Hai deewani". While I loved the movie with all it's essence of living and celebrating life, peppered with deftly-woven words, the "loving life anyways" cliches and the songs, of course, but I was equally appalled in the very beginning by the portrayal of characters. Naina, played by Deepika, is shown to be a nerd. And  carefree Aditi, played by Kalki, is shown to be rather nasty, if you go by the perception of most mothers of our time. But the disgruntling part is that Aditi proclaims, "studying is not my cup of tea....so I am graduating in arts...." while Naina is the studious medical student.

Which brings us to my center of anxiety. Hasn’t the popular perception changed yet?

Upon a little more contemplation, I realize that bitter truth pours out from the very first scene of the movie. 

That when it comes to choosing a stream, medical, engineering and commerce are still dominant.

That when it comes to choosing a stream, medical, engineering and commerce are still dominant, and humanities is lagging behind...

Far behind from being the first choice.....

Not because it doesn't offer a career or because it is unaffordable...

But because of "popular perception"..... the annoying attitude of the masses..... the reluctance to challenge tradition....

We can perhaps ignore the comment and dismiss it as a dialogue of the movie. But when Roohafza can react by filing a lawsuit, why should we, as part of this education system, remain indifferent and insouciant

We must not forget that Humanities, a stream we so callously deride and despise, encompasses the very subjects that offer us a better understanding of ourselves.

The subjects we look down upon with scorn and disdain are the very subjects that have evolved through the ages to help us sustain in this dynamic world.

The subjects we thoughtlessly detest as "theory subjects requiring cramming" have been the honour, the diadem of a plethora of intellectuals whom we revere and refer to, till date. These include inter alia, Bertrand Russell, Voltaire, Aristotle, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Homer, and Da Vinci. They have contributed immensely to the society, for which we can never be grateful enough.

Although it is just a surmise on my part, I believe this erosion of aesthetic value has a much deeper implication for our future, our lives...

“Skepticism has become a virtue. Cynicism and demand for proof has become enlightened thought. Is it any wonder that humans now feel more depressed and defeated than they have at any point in human history” – Dan Brown, Angels and Demons.

 But, alas! We are superficial, materialistic hypocrites. We revere science instead of scriptures. We live in the cocoon (most of us still do) that the society has woven for us, and throughout our lives, we are burdened by the societal expectations, thereby writing our own perdition. But the science we glorify has to be used with caution, an aspect that deals with society and hence, social sciences. It is arts and its study that points out the fallacy of this thinking.

A befitting example is that of the role of human resource in the corporate world. In this age of bombardment of information and restless dispositions, it becomed the most Herculean job to retain talented people in an organisation. Here, too an understanding of human nature is of mounting significance.

Which means human, humanity and humanities are the lifelines of each other.

And that humanities be given the respect it deserves…

 And “popular perception” be changed…