Column

If you were to recall the iconic images of this year you would observe one common strain. The maximum media coverage was given to ‘non-state actors.’ Those who hold candlelight vigils at the Wagah border might jump up and say, ‘Look there is one more thing in common between us and them; non-state actors play a critical role in Pakistan too!’ That self-destructive aside apart, the fact is that the media was partial to individuals who brought us joy and a sense of pride. And in most cases, readers and viewers found themselves nodding in agreement that yes this deserved the space that was given to it by the media.

When a successor to Ratan Tata was chosen, every single newspaper gave it front page coverage as if an heir to the crown had been anointed. Overnight, the unknown Mistry was no longer a mystery. Why was he given so much prominence, when in contrast the induction of a minister into the cabinet is given a withering media reference? And how many know the name of the cabinet secretary, the senior-most bureaucrat of what was once the steel frame of India? Why was Mistry treated so deferentially by the media? Obviously, the media was reflecting the esteem that people hold this private group in for its business practices.

Then there was Dev Anand. His death was covered as befits a national icon. Every newspaper and television channel gave him tributes fit for a hero. Indeed, for two generations of Indians, Dev Anand personified hope and optimism. There were some dissenters who rancorously complained about this saturation coverage; but that churlish screech was drowned out in a celebration of life that brought extraordinary cheer to cinema and a refreshingly high idiom of good looks.

Above all, Anna strode the national stage like a colossus. He is an unlikely hero; a simple, barely literate man the likes of whom are normally just about tolerated by the hoi polloi. But throughout the year he has been lionised repeatedly by them. And it is not just them; the crowds keeping a vigil outside his jail and those gathered at the venues of his fast were a virtual conglomeration of a mini India in all its variety and colour. The media was quick to sense that this was special; that Anna’s message may be simple, he may be repetitive, his ideas may not have the range or profundity of Mahatma Gandhi, but his concern for the country is genuine. It is a protest whose time was long overdue.

Was there a shining moment this year for state actors? Objectively speaking, the year started off well for official India. Economy was on a trot, Indian companies were investing the world over, and there was a general feeling that inflation was an inconvenience but not a formidable barrier in the national march towards growth. Then, the bad news stated to trickle in. One after the other, scams began to tumble out shocking the nation and cramping the decision-making machinery.

The foreign investors were the first to react; they withdrew their money in large tranches from the stock market and slowed down investment in projects. Since then the establishment has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. You might say some of this could be motivated; that the media is by its vocation anti-establishment. Even if one were to grant that, can it ever be said that the media is biased en masse? That’s neither likely nor feasible. The media needs the establishment’s approval for its financial survival almost as much as it seeks the endorsement of the readership for its quality.

Therefore, something must be very wrong to cause this huge turnabout. The economy is in a tailspin, foreign investment has virtually dried up, and decision-making is mostly in a confrontational mode with that simple man Anna Hazare who is driving the agenda. Perhaps that single issue has led to more cabinet meetings than any other matter in the second half of this year. As the year folds to a grim close, the national mood is dark; the promise of January 2011 has given way to a limp December.

But is this our Annus Horribilis? No, because you haven’t seen nothing yet. Wait till 2012 brings you nastier surprises, before you decide which of the two is really the Annus Horribilis.

A former ambasador, the writer is a novelist and artist