DON’T CHASE A CHICK!

Hurry? Read only the italicized stuff!….

“Don’t chase a chick man! You may end up disturbing many lives!! So better stand by the road and watch!” reads the status update of a Yo-Yo mallu guy who got out of theatre watching the Malayalam movie Traffic. Yup, there is some truth in that. But other than chasing the , the movie Traffic showcases innumerable chases that we undertake in our lives. Fasten your seat belts; we gotta take a look at chases that matter.

Chase for Power

Being persuaded by politicians and top bureaucrats to donate his son’s heart for the super star’s daughter, the father replied, “For you, he may be a boy on the death bed, but for he is my only son! The conspicuous absence of the superstar and his attempt to wield power to get things done is thought provoking.   The aam admi or the common man is at the receiving during the chase and use of power.

Rahul Gandhi struck the right note when he said recently that politics should be taken as a sacrifice for the nation because if we take it as a carer it would become a means to earn money and lead to corruption.”  The unbridled craze for the chase of power has to be checked by the counter move people.  It is ‘we the people’ who control the traffic signals by making use of Right to Vote, Right to Information and the social networking medium. This will make politicians and bureaucrats refrain from Lording over the aam aadmi and will be held more accountable.

Chase for the Stars

“Ask who is my best friend?” ‘Ask what is my ambition”…she scribbled a few personal questions and secretly handed it over to the interviewer. The superstar fumbled searching for answer. He had contradicted what he said just moments before, “I try to spent time with my family. We share everything between ourselves.” The superstar had hardly any time to spend with his wife and daughter and seldom cared about them.

In the mad chase for success, the movie Traffic prompts us to rethink our life’s strategies. Putting on hold regular calls to parents, occasional visits to relatives and friends may make us a super star or get us to a successful profession to boast of. Life is not all about professional success alone. Professional success sans social relations will make you like a five year old kid, left alone in a mall with a credit card; You have everything but don’t know what to do!

Chase for Bribe

The movie traffic reveals one of the glorious paradoxes. The traffic constable who was suspended for taking bribe had to pay bribe to a local politician to revoke his suspension!! While the big sharks escape unhurt pocketing bribes, the small ones are occasionally caught to hit the headlines in news papers.

It would be foolishness personified if one goes and preach regarding the need to stop taking bribe.‘ We the people’ must decide whether to pay bribe or not.  The fruit of our hard earned labour must not be dished out to satisfy the greed of an erring official. Rather than chasing the bribe taking officials with few bucks, chase them away. Conscious attempt from ‘we the people’ will turn the tide.

Chase the History

‘You have every right to say No, but an Yes will create History (and it did!). These words of the hospital director echoed in the mind of the police commissioner. It prompted him to take up the mission of carrying the operated heart in 2 hours from Cochin to Palakkad during the peak evening hours – an impossible mission in normal circumstances.  But the mission was a success.

The government machinery is a sleeping giant. The corporate style of leadership, energy and infrastructure should be infused so that the inherent potential of the 10-5 working officials are well used for the common good.  Treading the beaten path will make one part of history, but to carve a space in history one has to blaze one’s own trail. The ripples created by Traffic must inspire government officials to think different and act positive.

Chase the Fans

A phone call to the fans club secretary made sure that a busy and narrow street was cleared off, for the speed and safe passage of the vehicle carrying the operated heart. The use of force by the police would not have made it possible.

The superstars in India, especially in the south have a huge fan following. Beyond pouring milk and bursting crackers, the stars must make a creative use of the crazy fans for the upliftment of the society. Starts must consider it as a responsibility to manage their fans rather than leaving if for the fans their weird ways to celebrate the achievements of the actor.  Traffic has just shown that possibility

Right Chases Baby…

Traffic beyond doubt is a trend setter. Obviously its’ not all about chasing chicks, but the movie rips open diverse chases that we undertake in our lives. The rising applause barometer in the theatre at the end of the movie is a visible sign of a public agreement to undertake chases that matter with more responsibility . So go after RIGHT CHASES BABY!!