Global warming is taking the world towards the mythological times of ancient civilisations when gods and heroes wore very few clothes. In India, Shiva, Ganesha, Rama, Krishna, Sita, Draupadi, Parvati, Shakuntala, Vyasa, Valmiki and others are never shown, in paintings or carvings, wearing
warm clothing. How did they manage without woollen/fur jackets and overcoats in the cold winters of the north?
There are two possible explanations for this curious pattern. One, north India was warm throughout the year in those times. But there is no geological proof of this, unless we’ve got the mythological periods all wrong. Two, that ancient painters and sculptors were like the media’s Page 3 photographers— they wanted to present pictures in which men and women showed off their exquisite figures. This is a more realistic explanation. Winter must have been a quiet time, without any glamorous parties, fashionable attire, and photo-ops. Summer was the time for fun and action.
We seem to be heading towards this kind of fun and action in politics and public activism. During the recent French presidential elections, a French magazine had candidates Nicolas Sarkozy and Segolene Royal in swimsuits on the cover. Both have nice and trim figures. A more recent photograph shows British male and female protestors marching around Parliament Square in London wearing only their underclothes. Their protest was called ‘Pants for Poverty’.
These are trend-setting activities. One can anticipate their emulation in an India that is warming up further. Imagine Sonia Gandhi, Mayawati, Jayalalitha, Sheila Dixit, Karunanidhi, Sharad Pawar, Mulayam Singh and other politicians in swimsuits and competing for magazine cover exposure. They may even propagate the trend as an aspect of transparency in governance, or, “We have nothing to hide!” That should set off lively controversies among the public and media about which politician is more transparent than the others. On the public protest front, there will be swimsuit-clad activists such as Medha Patkar, Arundhati Roy, Shabana Azmi and their many male and female supporters. If there is a police lathi-charge, they can turn their backs to cameras and show the red welts to provoke public anger.
Public protests are generally about demands for greater transparency in governance and a more equitable distribution of prosperity. So, the public will demand transparency and politicians will show that they are indeed transparent. The competition for ‘transparency’ coverage in the media will provoke extremism as well as protesting conservatism. Extremism might proceed towards nudism, and conservatism will push for a cover-all burqa for everyone. A mass nude protest in Mumbai’s Azad Maidan will be opposed by a fully covered protest in Shivaji Park. There would be comparable events in other Indian cities. One consequence will be that politics and protests will be an aspect of the fashion industry. As part of its research, the fashion industry will turn to mythologies. Interesting times are ahead.
(Dilip Raote is a senior journalist and writer)