REVIEW OF KAW CAW SILlY POINT BY ARUN WAKHLU

Review of   the book  'Kaw Caw Silly Point' 

                                                                 Arun Wakhlu

                    In a national  atmosphere rife with  constant seriousness and bad blood embellished with  equally bad news, this book by MK Kaw ('Kaw Caw Silly Point', Konark Publishers) comes as a welcome breath of fresh air.  As a  “a wonky look at contemporary India” , the book more than succeeds in bringing  a smile to the heart, and an expansion of the mind on many current issues facing the nation. In it, Shri Kaw has woven his literary magic once again with a heady amalgam of insight, wit, twists of words, creative connections and pure unadulterated lampooning of the Aloo Yadavs, Kayawatis , Samatas and  Gayalalithas of the world, and others of their ilk.

The book is a collection of articles which the author has written  over four decades. He started writing 'Kaw Caw' as a column in 1982 for the Times of India and later for other newspapers.  Some pieces ghave come from 'Silly Point' (a monthly column in 'G-Files', a special magazine about governance issues in India). Readers  of  Naad,( the mouthpiece of the  All India Kashmiri Samaj)  inspired him to add some pieces from his monthly column “Kaw Caw” in this magazine too. So in a sense, the anthology is a Crème de la crème of the humorous outpourings of the author, curated by himself.

From the elephants of Kayawati, to  politics to cricket, it is a heady and creative mix all the way.

Whether it is  Rahul Baba and the  File( Ch. 4), or  The Myth Called Narendra Modi (  In Ch. 9 ), the author’s satirical jibes have not spared anyone.  While a luminous and  humourous vein runs through all chapters of the book, like the  string in a pearl necklace, the book is not all “Hasna Khelna” (laughter and Play). It offers  some very practical tips for discerning people in the fields of Public  Service and  Education . The Ancient, the Fresh and the  Migrant Battas (Ch.21) is a panoramic and erudite view of the recent history of the Kashmiri Pandit community (The Battas).

For me , besides the above, I found two things to be endearing about the book. The author paints graphic  and funny pen pictures of things we have all encountered from   an obsession with storing water, to malfunctioning ATMs . We see our own lives  and experiences reflected in the book, albeit through a funny lens. Secondly, the author lovingly makes fun of himself, thereby jumping into the funny circus  ring of life like a true joker.

To understand the pool of experience from where the richness of book is coming, and also its value, you need to understand the multidimensional person that the author is. He is almost like a “Renaissance Man” born in the wrong century. His experience spans across several important assignments as an the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Himachal cadre. (1964 batch). 

He has held important posts at the state and central levels.  He served as the  Principal Secretary to two chief ministers. At the Centre, his postings were in the Ministries of Rural Development, Defence and Finance. He was the Member Secretary of the Fifth Central Pay Commission, Secretary Civil Aviation, Principal Adviser (Education) Planning Commission and Secretary Human Resource Development  launching vital schemes like the 'Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan'. He retired in 2001.

Besides having  written 15 books, he  has published several books of poetry in English and Hindi, a novel, short stories, plays, middles and so on. His earlier title Bureaucrazy is still a bestseller and The Science of Spirituality a classic on philosophy. Besides, he has authored a 13-episode serial Kehna Aasaan Hai for  the Kashir channel of Doordarshan.

To those who have the go fortune of knowing him personally, he is also a good singer and sketching artist , an ardent  poet who can pull out an appropriate  couplet at the drop of a hat, a devotee of Sai Baba, and a deeply spiritual person.
The book draws beautifully from this amazing and rich pool of experience.

Having been blessed with  such a full life, where one has “seen it all and done it all”, when one is on the verge of Enlightenment, the role of the  Joker/Jester comes naturally.

In medieval courts, the court jester was someone who was not expected to follow the same rules as others. He could observe and then poke fun. This makes the jester  unpredictable and full of surprises. He reminds us of the unlimited potential and spontaneity inherent in every moment. The Joker  adds the new and unfamiliar to a situation. He  also represents the complete faith that life is good and worthy of trust. Some might call the Joker too innocent, but his innocence sustains him and brings him joy.

While researching for this review of Shri M K Kaw’s book, I discovered that the Divine Jester  is called  “ Il Matto” in Italian. (By a not so strange coincidence, the Divine Jester   is also called a “Mattoo” in Kashmiri.)  He represents mystical cleverness bereft of reason within us, the childlike ability to tune into the inner workings of the world. The  Jokers  wisdom and exuberance, come from his divine nature…a form of  holy madness or 'crazy wisdom'.

What no one dared to tell the King in ancient courts was conveyed through wit and jest by the Court Jester. Like James Bond had a “Licence to Kill” , the Court Jester had a licence to tickle!  He forced people to see things differently, to not take life too seriously. Maharaj Krishan Kaw, seems to be playing this role beautifully. This book is evidence.

The book alters our perspectives, gets us to re-examine our  inner “operating system” and challenges  how we look at ourselves and  life. By observing the incongruous, and connecting the apparently unconnected, the author has managed to create a heady   mix of   satire, wisdom, creative insights and pur unadulterated fun! This is no mean task.  The book is a delightful read that is light on the brain and yet infuses light into our minds. Heartiest Congratulations to the Author for pulling this anthology together.

In the Bhagawad Geeta (Ch4, Shloka 8), Maharaj Krishna (the Real One) says  that to protect the righteous, and to destroy evil,to establish  Dharma as the core purpose of life, I manifest from time to time. (Paritraanaya Sadhunaam…etc.). He also takes on different forms to do His work .

Since everything is His Leela (Play) and all is Him dancing ,it is true  to say that He has taken on the form of Maharaj Krishna  Kaw, to not only restore what is true and beautiful, but also bring a smile to our lips and cheer to the Heart.

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* Executive Chairman, Pragati Leadership Institute, Pune. (www.pragatileadership.com)