The fortune cookie elections

Nothing changes after elections. Yet they are fascinating. Maybe it's because as humans, we are designed to perennially live in hope.

Karnataka is going to vote on Saturday. Politicians who claim to cement every pothole and bring the metro to each and every nook and corner of the city, have already hijacked all the cab drivers and finding a ride home means endless waits. And if you run into an election rally, your wait can extend into eternity.

We may display apathy towards elections and our politicians, but like a bad movie that you have paid to watch, we just have to know the ending. Before the elections, newspapers publish the net worth of our netas. They run into hundreds of crores. Close your eyes and imagine a crore. Then add a few more zeroes to it. Makes you dizzy, doesn't it?

Why do we vote, when we expect little or no change?

It's like going to work without expecting a salary.

Just before elections, roads that are already tarred get magically re-tarred.

Parks that are already beautiful are made even more beautiful.

People you haven't seen in your life at all come to your doorstep and promise you the world.

The absurd promises made by politicians remind me of fortune cookie sayings.

'You will experience a traffic free ride to work because there won't be any potholes on the road'

'All of your financial worries will be dissolved as a sum of 15 lakhs will magically appear in your account'

'Today you will get closer to God as you will accorded your own religion'

'You will make great chutney with your brand new free mixie'

'Something great is coming your way in the form of a corruption free society'

'Everything you have wished for will come to fruition because someone has finally listened to you after 50 years'

If you don't believe something will work, the odds of you doing it are remote.

But elections don't follow that rule.

Something in us actually believes that things will change after the elections.

Without anticipation and hope, there can be no progress. A vote does carry a lot of power. So does a political mandate. The problem lies in the mismatch of hope and reality.

So vote well, Karnataka. It's your responsibility and the least you can do.

On the day after elctions, just don't be surprised when your fortune cookie reads

'Today will be just like any other day. Have a great day.'

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