KOCHI: Blessed are the souls that get to sip some Glenfiddich and delve into a dusty dictionary in a quiet nook of the house on New Year’s Eve. In my case, filter kaapi may well replace the fine whiskey, but the allure remains unchanged.
Dictionaries, for all their stoicism, offer a surprisingly delightful read. Informative, intriguing, thought-provoking — they hold no emotional layers, just the quiet hum of knowledge waiting to be unearthed.
Before I escape into this lexical haven, let me share my pick for Kerala’s ‘Word of the Year’: Hypocrisy.
It’s a word that emerged from Greek hypokrites, which means ‘an actor’ or ‘a stage player’, according to Merriam-Webster.
“The Greek word took on an extended meaning to refer to any person who was wearing a figurative mask and pretending to be someone or something they were not,” the dictionary notes.
I picked hypocrisy, taking note of the paradoxical ways, especially, of the socio-cultural vanguard, and, of course, the fiery Young Turks.
A fitting description, wouldn’t you say, for those who wear masks of progressiveness while turning a blind eye to inconvenient truths?
In the grand global dance of hypocrisy, they pirouette with a unique flair that leaves one baffled.
At times, the irony is as thick as the coconut milk in traditional Kerala curries.
For one, Malayalis proudly champion democracy, free speech, and the right to dissent, yet the same fervent defenders of these principles may conveniently turn a blind eye to the indiscretions of their beloved political parties or leaders.
2023 was quite horrendous in terms of governance in the state. Grim issues such as corruption, scams, drug menace, crime rate, farmer suicides, etc., have been systematically swept under the rug.
Youth wings of the ruling party behave as if they have a carte blanche to unleash thuggery at their whim. Even policemen are not spared their wrath.
And the cherry on top? The chief minister himself praised the displays of muscle as ‘life-saving acts’. More glory to the yobs!
Where are the voices of dissent? Muffled, it seems, by political loyalties and selective outrage.
Sadly, barring a few brave journalists and social observers, not many have been forthcoming to speak truth to power. The most appalling case was the rape and murder of a six-year-old girl in Vandiperiyar, Idukki.
The sole suspect, Arjun, a local DYFI activist, was acquitted by a special court for lack of evidence. Slamming the shoddy investigation, the judge concluded that the prosecution had failed.
Notably, right from day one, there were allegations of political interference to derail the case and shield the accused. No doubt, the accused remains innocent until proven guilty, as we are guided by the legal principle of ‘presumption of innocence’.
But the silence from the so-called progressive and vocal Kerala society has been numbing. I couldn’t help but snigger when a darling friend and firebrand comrade — who would glow with rage at the mention of any injustice — admitted that she had not heard of the Vandiperiyar case. A couple of days ago, the same person was heard railing about ‘Free Palestine’.
How many hashtags demanding justice for the Vandiperiyar girl did you, dear reader, come across?
As per official data, at least 225 children were murdered, 10,168 sexually assaulted and 1,667 children kidnapped in the past eight years. Outcries, however, have been at their feeblest best.
It’s apparent that Kerala’s social outrage is reserved for select causes, regions. Being blinded by party politics when it comes to issues in one’s own front yard, certainly does not bode well for society. In vintage Renji Panicker lingo (think The King), it’s “slavery”, “castration”.
On a more moderate note, I recall a blunt observation by the erudite and outspoken Murali Gopy during an engaging Express Dialogues interaction in July: “We place the Left on a higher pedestal. Sadly, the Left-wing here shows strong Right-wing tendencies these days.... There is no real Left here.”
Speaking of lingo, you may replace the ‘hypocrisy’ with Pharisaism (the quality of being self-righteous or hypocritical), Tartuffery (the character or behaviour of a Tartuffe: hypocrisy), or sanctimony (the action or practice of acting as if one were morally superior to other people).
Okay, time for me to wrap up the rant, and go on a date with my filter kaapi and a hefty dictionary. Leaving you with Words of the Year 2023 announced by popular dictionaries. Have a bold and beautiful New Year!
Oxford Dictionary
Word: Rizz
Meaning: Pertaining to someone’s ability to attract another person through style, charm, or attractiveness. The word can also be used as a verb, often in the phrase ‘rizz up’, which means ‘to attract, seduce, or chat up (a person)’.
Merriam-Webster
Word: Authentic
Meaning: Not false or imitation; true to one’s own personality, spirit, or character.
Context: Increased usage in discussions about identity, social media, and AI’s impact.
Cambridge Dictionary
Word: Hallucinate (AI-related meaning)
Meaning: To experience unreal or distorted perceptions churned out by AI.
Dictionary.com
Word: Hallucinate
Meaning: Same as above
Interestingly, Dictionary.com has launched ‘Vibe of the Year’.
“This year, one of the top lookups at Dictionary.com was the word vibe, the current go-to term — along with the plural vibes — for talking about the overall feel of a situation or person,” says the editor’s note.
A popular term among the youth, ‘vibe’ basically means “the mood of a place, situation, person, etc. and the way that they make you feel”.
It may also be used in the verb format — vibe with: “to like someone or something and feel comfortable and happy with them”.
Now, Dictionary.com has declared ‘eras’ as the Vibe of the Year “based on the shared sense that we’re all looking for ways to define the perpetually shifting stages of our cultural and personal histories”.
Besides the historical eras we often hear about, the word now has a new-gen meaning: “periods of time in a person’s life characterised by something distinctive and noticeable, such as a particular emotional state, relationship, achievement, or interest”.
“In 2023, the word eras forever took on a new connotation. The name of Taylor Swift’s generation-defining Eras concert tour is most directly a reference to its celebration of the many distinct eras of her career, simultaneously retrospective and forward-looking,” the dictionary’s lexicologists explain.
“But the tour’s name also nods to a more personal sense of the word era recently popularised as a way that people empower themselves to define — and redefine — their own personal eras, including ending old ones, starting new ones, and vibing with whatever era they’re in right now.”
I love the concept, and the usage examples listed:
“Officially ending my wait-and-see era and entering my make-it-happen era.”
“I am now fully in my adult colouring book era.” (I am buying one today.)
PS: I hope I will be pardoned for not having listened to Taylor Swift ever. More of a Jonathan Swift kind. Mea culpa.