I happened to attend a programme by Parampara recently at their Alwarpet HQ to popularise tulasi / tulsi (Holy Basil). Though their intentions may be noble, I was stunned by the lack of sensitivity of the organisers.
A few school girls had come in their full dance costume. I saw one of them struggling to find out where to go and wait. All the organisers were busy welcoming and attending to the VVIPs such as Suhasini Maniratnam and Vyjanimala Bali. There was none to help the poor girl. Finally her teacher, who was in the audience, noticed her and asked her to come and sit near her.
There were some technical hitches with the ancient sound system, which is normal. But I was surprised to see the Parampara chief shouting at the sound system guy in full view of the crowd. I also saw her telling one of her assistants that it was getting late and there was no need for “these dance programmes”. This happened in full earshot of a poor kid waiting to dance.
I saw the father of the same kid asking the organisers (including the chief) after the programme for a place for his daughter to change her dress. While one of the organisers was kind enough to ask for a few minutes’ time, the chief almost brushed him aside!
There is no point in trying to promote what is a noble concept if you can’t understand the sensitivities of human beings, especially children. I feel the main reason for all these were the presence of too many VVIPs and VIPs. The organisers were so busy attending to them that they hardly realised they were doing it at the cost of hurting others.
