Fear and the fearless pose

#FerozKhanKaPota was trending on X; so, naturally, I thought Fardeen Khan’s son was making his Bollywood debut.

- ANUJA CHAUHAN

Bit young to be launched was my initial thought, but then I figured he could be taking the Jaden Smith route. Anyway, I clicked on the hashtag, and much to my disappointment it turned out to be the same old right-wing ravings about the ‘Muslim origins’ and ‘stupidities’ of Rahul Gandhi. Disappointment, because I genuinely thought the BJP bots were smarter than this. Surely, they realise that the pappufication of Rahul—rather like wabi-sabi decor and Sabyasachi reds—is so last season? Like it or not, Rahul is no longer a lightweight, a dynast or a reluctant politician. He’s sharp, he’s smart, he’s doing his homework—his speeches are fiery, his rebuttals instant and stinging. He has self-appointed fairy godmothers on YouTube and the independent media and his championing of the idea of India, as envisioned by our founding fathers, has caught the imagination of the nation.