As New Delhi enters its 100th year, an outsider’s spurious tribute

On the 62nd anniversary of this princely state’s surrender to the Indian Union, a look back at the trail of events that led up to it. 

It is finally 26/11. A couple of thoughts. All random.

I woke up this morning to sounds and sights of marching bands and tanks outside my window on Marine Drive in Mumbai. The Maharashtra government organised a parade of policemen, anti-terror personnel, tanks, and equipment that had been procured over the past year. It was what TV channels are calling a “show of strength”, a message that they’re prepared. I have to sheepishly admit that I felt something akin to pride, or maybe hope, I’m not sure, but it was like watching a Republic Day parade. A child saluted a tankman, he saluted back; people walked with the personnel and clicked pictures; the joggers stopped, commuters slowed down. My neighbour pointed out that I should go get ready for work because this is Maharashtra, the police force is still in disarray, and nothing will change. But sometimes it’s not about the politics, you should just give in to the showmanship.

Living in Mumbai, it’s been difficult to avoid the deluge of 26/11 commemoration. But the most interesting facet of the media coverage is the machinations behind the scenes: the PR approaches of the two major hotels at the centre of the attacks. The Oberoi Trident with its standard issue 80s architecture and diligent-but-impersonal hospitality style has always seemed colder and less endearing than the legendary Taj Mahal. But in the walk-up to the anniversary, The Oberoi has maintained a stoic and dignified silence, which I think is admirable. From the beginning, most of its staff had been instructed not to speak with the media, and though that’s a pain for us, I respect that strategy. But the Taj, fiercely guarded by its public relations representatives at Vaishnavi Communications and their powerful leader Nira Radia, I believe has made a misstep. As any media professional who has ever tried to set up an interview with a Taj employee knows, Vaishnavi handholds the hotel as though the media are filled with pit bulls, but this time I think the PR company did the hotel a disservice. The fact that Mr Karambir Kang was on the front page of the Times of India (November 13 issue), on television and then in several foreign publications, including The Telegraph and Vanity Fair, felt as though the hotel was using a painful story to push the point that it had been resurrected from the ashes of 26/11. While readers may not think twice about story placement, I can tell you that national newspapers rarely place what they call a ‘human interest story’ front and centre of their cover page, unless of course it is of interest to a company as powerful as the Tatas, and engineered with the considerable clout of someone like Radia. Bombay House, the Tata HQ, does not make accidental choices, and neither does its PR agency. And the fact that ToI was the chosen national newspaper could also mean that the Tatas have reached a truce with Bennett Coleman, ToI’s publishers. (For a slice of the history of bumpy media relations between the two companies read this Exchange4media article. At any rate, I think The Oberoi elicited more sympathy from what it didn’t say.

The latest advertisement for IDEA Telecom has Abhishek Bachchan asking people to ‘Talk for India’. According to the message of the ad, all income generated by calls made within India between 8.36 pm and 9.36 pm on 26 November will be donated to the police force so they can buy “better protective gear”. Can the police force actually take hand-outs from the public to buy gear for their men? Is it even allowed? If it is then it’s pretty pathetic. I thought that’s why we pay taxes. Will IDEA also get to brand the Mumbai Police?