15th August 2006, CMH Road, Bangalore.
Let me start this post with an apology... for those few of you who visit my website. Sorry for not being as frequent a poster as you wish me to be, if you wish me to write at all. I was meaning to post this post on 15th August but what with my rampant laziness and all that sort of thing, I am doing it now.
Look at the picture closely. There is an elaborate set up for Hunger Strike but there is not a single soul participating in it. What more, it is not a Hunger Strike. It is a Relay Hunger Strike.
A Relay Hunger Strike is one where a group of people go hungry in turns. You have a hearty breakfast and come and sit for a while, then at around midday as your stomach starts rumbling you go for your lunch and your friend who has just finished a sumptuous lunch - mind you, he hasn't skipped his breakfast - takes over for a couple of hours and he stares at the clock as the hands will move relentlessly on to four o'clock, and he will enter the long dark teatime of the soul after which he moves on in life to satisfy his long standing urge to have tea while a second friend of yours comes in to fill the void and hangs on till it is time to have his drink and dinner.
Think of all the honest hunger strikes our freedom fighters commited themselves to and see what the whole idea is reduced to. What a farce. Look at the picture. One thing is that it is a Relay Hunger Strike and another thing is that it is from 11AM to 5PM. Great!! It seems to have been specially organised by gluttons of the first water and the whole joke is sponsored by that food joint Frankie. Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn.
