I am cooking in the kitchen. It’s a beautiful day outside, a bird chirping in the distance and children happily making their way to school. “Girija,” a voice bellows. The bird almost falls from its branch. I shake from my reverie and immediately know that the idiot box has been switched on. The scream is followed by a screeching background score. It is the same old tale of an evil mother-in-law plotting with her daughter to kill the innocent doe-eyed daughter-in-law.
“We have to finish off that low-life once and for all,” she screams. The daughter replies, “Yes mother. You are right. I can’t stand her righteous stupidity any more.”
Such murders are normal in Indian television serials. The premise is that the dumb policemen won’t suspect anything. So the characters spend their time plotting ways to tick off people from their hate list.
“Where have you been,” the mother-in-law hisses. “I have been to temple, athai .” Enter the most clichéd character of the daughter-in-law, an innocent girl who wears a plain simple sari as against the finest silk of the older woman.
“Go in and make a dosa for me. Can’t you see how hungry I am?” Then the mother and daughter resume their stupid planning. “How dare they do that to that poor gal,” a voice shouts in pain from our dining room. Our maid has stopped her work and is busy watching TV. “Those two won’t simply leave her alone,” she says.
Advertisements begin. Finally, the serial is back on air. The plot thickens (actually loosens) with the plan being executed.
Everyone seems to be glued to the screen watching serials one after the other. What about the lives of those who watch them and those who make their living producing them, not knowing that they are, in fact, dictating the lives of millions of people, unaware that their silly, unmindful scenes are setting bad examples.
This is not entertainment; it’s slavery and addiction. Switch off that machine and see the beauty of life. Watch the sunset, listen to birdsong, see the twilight slowly fading into night, sit down and talk with your loved ones, have dinner sharing stories and experiences, read books and talk about various topics, listen to nature and marvel at its myriad beauty, call friends and catch up on their lives, create a work of art, redecorate your home, go out for a walk. The choice is ours.
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