Southern avatars blocking march of Modi avatar
Indian mythology owes much of its success to avatars. Lord Vishnu had 10, Lord Shiva has 19, Lord Ganesha has eight, and Goddess Parvati has 10. Each avatar has its own distinct form, but all appeared on earth with a single purpose—to combat evil. In the Indian political pantheon, a fawning populace believes that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the avatar of vengeance that will redeem Hinduism, which has been vandalised by Muslim invaders and colonial transgressors. When he refers to Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar, the city is reimagined as a new avatar. Telangana, which the BJP considers its next geographical stepping stone, is the bellwether for its southern campaign.
It is easier said than done.
The Modi Avatar has worked on many fronts. Its onslaught on black money traumatised the middle class but made commoner-worshippers legion. Its surgical strikes against Pakistan resounded even in the South. Its largesse to the poor who received the boon of direct cash transfers, free home grants and gas cylinders made it the deity of plenty in villages. But why is Karnataka the exception that proves the rule that the Hindu Hridaya Samrat is yet to crack the South?
The answer perhaps is that Hinduism is as regional as it is national and universal. The Northern Hindi belt version is confrontational and impatient. It is in a hurry to claim ownership of India’s past and establish itself as the real McCoy. Southern Hinduism is more patient and slow to change. This is by no means to say that one is superior or inferior to the other; both share(d) evils like caste violence, ill-treatment of widows, subjugation of women and temple discrimination.
Southerners have their own Hindu gods such as Murugan, son of Lord Shiva and Tamil Nadu’s most popular deity irrespective of politics. Kerala has Guruvayoorappan, the Dravidian form of Lord Krishna and sacred above all to Malayalis. Goddess Poleramma is a manifestation of Sakti in Andhra Pradesh—a protectress of villages and towns. Each one of these divinities has its own mythology, references, folklore, saints and chroniclers, high priests and royal patrons. And none of them are political mascots of faith.
To succeed in the south of the Vindhyas, BJP tacticians must realise that the Southern Hindu mind can be approached and appropriated only by normalising the inherent differences between both cultures; and it is not merely a hatred of Islam in spite of more Keralans having joined ISIS in Syria than from other states. Data shows that South Indian Hindus are more religious than their Northern counterparts; a credible survey last year concluded that 62 percent of South Indians visit places of worship at least once a week, which is more than people in Central, Eastern, Western and Northeastern India.
About 57 percent of South Indians wear religious pendants, barely less than Central Indians. And only 37 percent of South Indians are against women in their community marrying a person of another faith. Both Islam and Christianity being proselytising religions do pose a threat to Hinduism. It seems that South Indian Hindus are very confident of their faith and their gods to be easily frightened. Modi commands a lot of respect in the South. The BJP, not so much. To blend both into an appealing avatar, saffron strategists must abandon the arrogance of their topographic convictions. Otherwise, the BJP could go South, but not in the manner it wants to.