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Putting the Best Foot Forward
February 15, 2008
“Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us” – Calvin (of ‘…and Hobbes’ fame. Not to be confused with John Calvin)
Dear NASA,
First of all let me congratulate you on your 50th anniversary. Your organization has been at the forefront of space exploration and has indeed boldly gone, as captain Kirk so eloquently put it, where no man has gone before. You have provided us with many Kodak moments – who can forget the shot taken by Apollo 17 that shows us Earth in all its glory. Not to mention Armstrong’s ‘giant leap for mankind’ (irrespective of the fact that many still believe that Stanley Kubrick’s cinematographic skills, and not your organisation’s technical ones, had a hand in that).
I have learnt that, to celebrate your golden anniversary, you have beamed towards the North Star, the Beatles song Across the Universe (which coincidentally celebrates its 40th anniversary on the same day).
The idea of communicating with the little green men is indeed a noble one. And like everyone, I believe that we should put our best foot (in this case, song) forward.
Though I am a die-hard Beatles aficionado (that quartet was among the best the world has seen, apart from Prasanna, Bedi, Venkat, and Chandrashekhar) I propose that instead of transmitting a song of the Fab Four, an Indian melody be sent across the universe. That will be more in line with the current, and indeed future, geo-political reality of the third rock from the sun.
Why?
1. India is the second populous nation of the world. By the time the song reaches the pole star in 431 years, India would have been the most populous country for close to 416 years.
2. While the rest of the world is posting growth rates of 2-3% (including the US, which is currently asking the question ‘To recess or not to recess?’), India has been aggregating more than 9%.
3. Whilst the others are concentrating on Supers of one kind (bowls and Tuesdays), India’s focus has been on superlatives of another variety – ‘World’s largest steel maker’, ‘World’s cheapest car’, ‘World’s largest democracy’, ‘World’s fastest growth rate in mobile telephony’ and so on.
4. Indian cuisine and films continue to increase in popularity and influence culture worldwide. After MithunDa’s antics in the 80s (who can forget the Russians crooning to Jimmy Jimmy Aaja Aaja), now Shahrukh is the new global Indian icon.
5. More and more CEOs of global companies are Indian-born. PepsiCo and CitiGroup are some that have recently joined that list but in 431 years that roll-call would be much longer. Companies like Tata Motors, UB, and Infosys have become global players.
6. More than anything, we Indians have found a new level of confidence in ourselves and our country. And rightly so. So much so, that even the Indian cricket team is playing better than ever before. And they don’t shy away from calling names, simian or otherwise.
This list can go on, but in my opinion these points themselves are compelling enough for you to consider transmitting a song by an Indian artiste.
Awaiting a favorable response from your end.
An Indian.
PS: Once you agree with our proposal, we shall send a short list of singers to be considered for this prestigious project. Some names that come to mind are Himesh Reshammiya, Bappi Lahiri, and Anu Malik. They shall do us Earthlings proud.
