Aam aadmi. Who?

In the last few months, I have been wondering just who the 8216;common man8217; or 8216;aam aadmi8217; is. He is mentioned in every politician8217;s speech, irrespective of his political allegiance.

In the last few months, I have been wondering just who the 8216;common man8217; or 8216;aam aadmi8217; is. He is mentioned in every politician8217;s speech, irrespective of his political allegiance. Yet we are not quite sure what he is about.

I started off on my inquisition in earnest. I sought the opinions of knowledgeable people across the spectrum: an economist, a sociologist, a film-maker, a doctor, a lawyer, a social activist, an industrialist, a politician and a priest. To my surprise, their descriptions varied widely. The economist saw him as being economically backward. The sociologist took me back some 5,000 years and explained that social inequalities by virtue of birth place a person in a water-tight caste system, from which he cannot escape.

The film-maker is much more enthusiastic: 8220;We make films for the aam aadmi. In those two hours, we make him forget his plight; he can live in a world of fantasy 8212; with powerful themes. Rags-to-riches stories, sagas of ordinary angry men fighting the system and so on. At the end of our films the common man gains some self-respect!8221;

I found the doctor in a sympathetic mood. He lamented that this person is financially unable to get proper medical attention and suffers at the hands of an indifferent healthcare system. The lawyer began to share his experiences. He began, 8220;The aam aadmi is not educated enough to understand that the law must take its own course. He is always in a hurry for justice!8221; The social activist spoke very fervently, 8220;Everyone exploits the aam aadmi. He is not aware of his rights. He gets pushed around and suffers patiently! That8217;s where we come in to give him hope.8221;

An industrialist said with a degree of indifference, 8220;I do not see any need to classify anybody under the banner of the 8216;common man8217;. He is the creation of politicians!8221; The politician, surprisingly, was forthright. He said, 8220;When we are sick, we want an uncommon doctor, when we have a construction project to finish, we want an uncommon engineer, and when we are at war, we want an uncommon general. It is only when we get into politics that we are satisfied with the common man.8221;

The priest simply said, 8220;God must love the common man. He made so many of them!8221;