Your Tableman’s Dilemma

It’s only when you enter a sarkari building that you fully acknowledge the extent of rudeness an official can exhibit. The person sitting behind the table, irrespective of gender in our country, tends to speak in a tone that is meant to disrespect you. Not in the society at large but at least in that building. Although they are the ones who are the public servants — which categorically means that you are paying their salaries and they are placed there to help you—their body language tries to master your situation. Moreover, you don’t mind any hint of misconduct because you merely want to have your task done. It could be anything from getting a signature or a form approved. On the other side, the sarkari babus will behave as if he is doing a favour to you. No doubt the reluctance to work diligently is endemic in our public institutions. 

However, here’s something i’ve noticed that might explain the rude aura in such places: self-defence mechanism. The tableman (let’s call him that) doesn’t have anything against you. He doesn’t know you personally and can’t see that you are a well-behaved educated person who reads [sometimes an awesome blog like this (wink :)]. The kind of people he majorly encounters on a daily basis are those who aren’t high on etiquette either. They won’t stand in queue, will refuse to understand the most basic of requirements and thus create disorder. In their defense, aam janta doesn’t believe in rules mainly because they feel cheated by the system. 

So, what unfolds in a sarkari setting is the yin yang of each side trying to defend their turf. The tableman raises his voice, flails his hands, pushes the crowd back if required, etc., only to maintain his higher position in the given situation. If he doesn’t affirm his authority, aam janta will easily overpower him before destroying him completely. In order to avoid such dire circumstances, the tableman not only begins his day on a rude note but also ends it on the same lane. No touching soft corner please. Unless you say “thank you, sir” before leaving the table, forcing him to look up at you in wonder.

                                   

          Heroes and Cinema

If you haven’t watched Nocturnal Animals (2016) yet, you will. This film is the cinematic equivalent of shaving as close as possible. Clear cut and tense. There is an undeniable sharpness to almost every single shot registered in there. As if director Tom Ford and cinematographer Seamus McGravey quite literally want us to touch the dapperness of the events unfolding, bumping up the whole visual experience. And it is indeed an experience! Although you might be aware of the book from which this story is adapted or you might even be seduced by the likes of Amy Adams and Jake Gyllenhaal helming the cast, you’ll come out massively impressed by Michael Shannon’s performance. If there is a list of underrated actors today, he must be sitting right on the top looking up at the sky instead of looking down on others. In Nocturnal Animals, Shannon’s character grants us the balance we seek in a thriller. 

He’s that guy who will do what needs to be done without ignoring the consequences. Intriguingly enough, everybody else on the screen lack this basic characteristic. His uniqueness lies in his anonymous suffering. He is angry at himself perhaps but he won’t tell you until it’s time. He is a good man and has what it takes to recognize a better man. He sticks to rules as long as he doesn’t have to abandon them. He, despite his relatively shorter screentime, boosts the screenplay the way we rarely get to notice nowadays. Tragic as it is, in the end, you don’t remember him because there is a grander scheme at play; the two main protagonists are busy trying to prove each other wrong and when such a game is going on, there is a little to no excuse left to highlight the real hero.

Oscars might be a self-validating circus but it’s a necessary circus. Which is why i feel that Amy Adams deserved that nod for her splendid outcome in Arrival (2016). I don’t know at whose expense though. It could have been her sixth nomination. She is yet to bag her first gong. By that yardstick, the only difference between her and Leonardo DiCaprio is there are no Internet memes dedicated to her. I’ll be surprised if she attends Dolby Theatre on the night of 26th this month. As she knows by now, the real nocturnal animals never show up.