Narcissism

Hitler, Lenin, Stalin, Saddam Hussain, Kamaraj Nadar, Sanjeeva Reddy, Karunanidhi and Mayawati. They belong to different countries, different times and different ideologies. But there is one common thread. Can you guess? They all had their statues installed in their life time. Some may coyly suggest that it is the love and affection of their admirers and they themselves had no hand in it.

Is it the desire to ensure leaving their personal stamp for posterity lest they may be forgotten after they are no more?

But in quite a few cases like Sanjeeva Reddy, Karunanidhi and Saddam Hussain they had to go through the mortification of their statues getting destroyed - again during their life-time.

Whatever may be the purpose of these statues and whatever may be the achievements of their originals in flesh and blood, different statues evoke different feelings.

Sir Thomas Munroe's imposing statue in Chennai, majestic on a horseback but without stirrups has always been a puzzle for me. The Subhas Chandra Bose statue in front of Secunderabad station resembles more of Brahmananda Reddy than Bose. The statues of Telugu greats on the Tank Bund in Hyderabad evoke the ire of KCR than any reverence. Kannagi statue on Marina, Chennai, banished by Jayalalitha for fear of bad luck has re-appeared, courtesy MK. The imposing Bamiyan Budha statues, alas, are no more thanks to Taliban. The Statue of Liberty in New York ever inspires immigrants to the great country US. It is somewhat sad to see disproportionate and ill-kept statues of Gandhi and Ambedkar in thousands. Definitely, they will not recognize their own replicas.

Ever enterprising China is exporting fibre glass statues of Rajasekhar Reddy whose son is on a statue-erection spree. Nobody, not even Madam, can protest.

I have seen the statues of a man and woman in Lepakshi Temple, which the guide told us, are the epitome of beauty and proportion.

It was reported somewhere that there is no more room for for further statues in Parliament complex. So over-crowded.

What will be the fate of Mayawati's statues - we can only contemplate for ever like Rodin's 'Contemplation'.



…ponder