The Rang De Basanti Effect

"There are two primary choices in life - to accept condition as they exist or accept responsibility for changing them.
RANG DE BASANTI is about changing them"
- Rakesh Omprakash Mehra (Director of Rang De Basanti)

Let me warn all my readers first - this is not yet another review of Rang De Basanti. In the movie, there is more than one discussion about corrupt politicians and the pathetic situation of a poverty-stricken India. The youth which represents our generation sighs during each discussion that nothing can't be changed in this country. We sigh along with them, and when Aamir Khan utters the words, "kill him" (about killing the corrupt politician), we hold our breathe and wait. What is gonna happen.. Does the system change?

Let the debate about the movie go on .. Whether the climax was effective.. Whether the movie was dragging .. anything. But, in the end, what stays back in mind is the quote : "There are two primary choices in life - to accept condition as they exist or accept responsibility for changing them."

Changing conditions can be either by making a living or breaking it.

I get always confused by the people who come begging in buses and trains. Since I have to pass through a lot of bus stands or railway stations before reaching home, the frequency of stretched hands is really high. There are many arguments regarding giving money to them. One is that, we should never give them money because it would make them rely on begging as a means of living. However, most often, especially when I travel alone, I find it too difficult to turn away from a persistent stretched hand.

In such a situation,
- will you blame the govt who does nothing to ban begging?, or
- will you give them a coin so that they don't disturb you any more? Or
- will you think of accepting the responsibility to contribute your share towards changing the conditions?

In Poornam, there is a group of people who accept responsibility for changing conditions. They didn't kill corrupt politicians to change lives. Instead, they just work silently to make some lives happier, to bring smiles to a few faces. A very good percentage of Poornam people take part in this mission. As part of doing this, a few volunteers from Poornam make a visit to Palluruthy Relief Settlement every month.



Palluruthy Relief Settlement (PRS), rehabilitates beggars and destitute from streets. PRS is run by Corporation of Cochin. Each time we visit, there would be around 250 inmates. Things are not smooth always, with a lot of mentally challenged people.






Poornam adds a few drops of contribution each month to the big ocean of needs they have.

There are lots of lessons we need to learn from such visits. The first and foremost is our duty to the society we live in. Each visit reminds us, how blessed are we in our big apartments and air conditioned offices. We are expected to give it back to the society - let it be a combined effort or single.

Add your drop too, which would make atleast one person smile. It doesn't matter where you add the drop of your kindness because all good deeds are bound to reach the same ocean.

"Little drops of water, Little grains of sand
Make the mighty ocean, And the beauteous land
Little deeds of kindness, Little words of love,
Make our earth an Eden, Like the heaven above"

- Mrs. J. A. Carney