Now that most of us Malayalees are basking in the warmth of the global ban on Endosulfan,even enjoying a brief spell of ‘unity’ (yes, even the UDF folk have joined, if more warily), what I’m about to write will probably make me quite unpopular. Well, here goes —  I have been watching the unfolding of events since last month’s elections to the Kerala State Assembly right up to the gathering of protest and the CPM-led charge against Endosulfan and it all looked like the ultimate festival of depoliticized mediatized dramatics. The dramatics during candidate-selection, the emotional performances of candidates, pretenders, leaders etc etc of various sorts for TV, the weepy complaints combined with nimble hopping across the LDF-UDF boundary by seekers of candidature, the lack of attention to manifestoes and the general attrition of discussion, all of this seemed to taper endlessly — exactly like the long-drawn-out daytime temple rituals during the Pooram at Thrissur. It was indeed a festival, consumed heavily and enjoyed immensely by the people — perhaps not in the sense of being a ‘festival of the people’.

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