I happened to attend the selection ceremony of a well known socialites' club yesterday. Informal sources revealed that money alone cannot buy you a membership to this most "prestigious" club of Lucknow (though an exorbitant amount of the same can help lubricate the process). All the biggies who aspire to join the club need to face an interview panel that judges them on numerous fronts, including the introduction that the couple (yes, the spouse is deemed to be judged) gives on stage.
It was these introductions that made the otherwise taxing 2 hours interesting. One of the questions that people answered was "why you would like to join the club?". Some people attributed their desire to the fact that their father. grand father and (yes, it's true) great grandpa were members, others to the club's swimming pool and kitty party; There were a few candid enough to call it an "achiever's club" and openly admit that they think they have "arrived" in their lives.
All these people were invariably rich (multi-million worth), owned their own houses, had kids studying in the top schools of Lucknow, wore a lot of make-up and were visibly wanna-be (some were embarrassed about it while the others flaunted it). The younger ones were invariably riding high on their parents' money while the self-made ones had grey hair before they could get shortlisted for the interview.
Sitting there I just wished that I was called to introduce myself so that I can say something explosive to hurt their hubris but as it turned out I was being given entry through the automatic route of all India service so i was spared the embarrassment of claiming that i am an achiever in front of people who were already too full of themselves to lend an ear to someone else's feats.
The club and its hinterland
There are some powerful people both in rural and urban India that thrive on disallowing economic development of the most poor. They look out to grab an opportunity to serve as middle men, brokers and deal makers for MNC projects that can dispossess millions. They are ever so ready to bribe the government servants and politicians in order to offer a higher return on investment for the big ticket capital. Some of them may also serve as high end car dealers and real estate brokers to allow the real "beneficiaries" to enjoy and park their spoils. After all isn't this a world of networking?
If being an "achiever" is about money and money comes from making the "right" deals - this is their capitalist right isn't it? I wonder the source of all the Audis in the parking lot of this exclusive club in one of the poorest regions of the world.
The purpose of clubs and cults is to shield each other from the "external", I wonder who these clubbers are shielding themselves from.
