Change we can?

February 10, 1993 AD. 4:30 PM.

The world was changing. It was in need of someone who would ceaselessly crusade for that 'change'. And it was almost conditional that I was destined to be born on that day and that time. 'If not me, who-u who-u?' I asked myself as a one-minute old socially-conscious newborn. And so did other kids who were born around the same time; out of love marriages, arranged marriages or simply as an act of rebellion against the government's family planning programme.

As a result, the world did change. At least most of the things did, like:

• George Bush to Bill Clinton and to er, George Bush  again--(the dumber version) 
• Indian Economy from 'Closed' to 'Open'
• Indian Prime Minister's mouth from 'Open' to 'Closed'
• Nintendo to PlayStation
• Bata to Nike
• Tata to 'foreign cars'
• Sunil Gavaskar to Sachin Tendulkar
• L Sivaramakrishnan to Hrishikesh Kanitkar
• Trunk calls to Missed calls
• Because to 'coz
• And everything else of these sorts...

However, there were a few things that were unfazed by the changing world, like Doordarshan, for instance. Kids couldn't take anymore of Shaktimaan fighting Kilvish (who scared them by wearing one of those third-rate scary masks that you get on local fairs) and his battalion of weird-clothed minions like Kekda Man (who was a creation of evil and botched-up make-up) and Dr. Jackal (who traveled in a cardboard spaceship). Even scarier was Shekar Suman and his lethal humour, which scared even the adults and they changed the channel which refused to change. (However, Suman kept coming on the other channels as well).

In spite of all these changes, I still kept fighting for MY change... on the town buses of Coimbatore throughout my life. The fast-paced world and the endangered species of one-rupee coins didn't help me carry the exact nine-rupees for making the journey of my life from Murugan Mills to Edayarpalayam. And like Barack Obama, the bus-conductors would promise me the change that I will never get. And some would even say thought-provoking stuff like 'Have the change you want us to give' (which might make their way into quotegarden.com and later into millions' FB status update) but the change you seek would never come.

That is when I decided, I must demand for the change. Be a Rebel--it is okay if the conductor bawls out profane words at you. All that matters is that by the end of the day, you own your change.

CHANGE WE CAN