Man of the Year: Dr. Ambedkar

With Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's name being raised in almost every conversation, a look at what makes him so popular among the masses

- Minal Sancheti

“Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar. Itna naam agar bhagwan ka lete to saat janmon tak swarg mil jata (It has become a fashion to say ‘Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar’. If they took god’s name so many times, they would have got a place in heaven),” said Home Minister Amit Shah in his Rajya Sabha speech.

This remark sparked a controversy that spread like a wildfire. It raised many eyebrows and gave rise to the question if Ambedkar is the current Nehru/Gandhi and/or is being used by many – politician and non-politicians – for their own benefit.

“I am of the opinion that the current controversy is something very unfortunate. Amit Shah’s statement should be seen in the context of what he said,” says Neelam Gorhe, Shiv Sena Deputy Chairperson, Maharashtra Legislative Council.

Flavour of the season

There is no denying that Dr. B.R. Ambedkar is the flavour of the season, with everyone jumping on to the bandwagon. Recently, Professor YS Alone in his lecture on ‘Curating Ambedkarian Aesthetics: Representation, Praxis, and the Public Sphere’ at Columbia Global Center, Mumbai, spoke about the contradictions that Ambedkar has given rise to. He mentioned that Dr Ambedkar believed that if we make the oppressed realise that they are oppressed they will wake up. He also talked about important photographic documentation and paintings made on the topic of Dalits and Ambedkar philosophy.