Kudos to Karan

Lord Karan Bilimoria’s speech at the House of Lords, on May 24, 2012 is doing the rounds on the internet. It is something every Parsi must read, assimilate, introspect on, and wonder where we have gone wrong. Some very crucial points from his address need to be addressed before we can take remedial steps to clear the mess we are in today.
Bilimoria spoke about the contribution made by Parsis to the cultural life and economy of the UK. What stru­ck me in his address was the high esteem in which we are thought of by all, especially in India: "Wherever you go in India everyone knows who a Parsi is.” None other than Narayan Murthy, one of India’s respected business leaders, says, "I have never met a bad Parsi.” Even Mahatma Gandhi had said: "In numbers Parsis are beneath contempt but in contribution beyond compare.”

Lord Karan Bilimoria: breaching the glass ceiling

Dadabhai Naoroji was elected on a Liberal ticket, Mancherjee Bhownaggree on a Conservative ticket and Shapurji Saklatvala on a Labour ticket, and now Karan Bilimoria is an Independent in Britain’s House of Lords. Bilimoria goes on to state what an enormous contribution Parsis have made to the armed forces right from the times of British rule in India to present day UK. He reiterates that 30 years ago he would never have been allowed to reach the top because as a foreigner there was a glass ceiling. Today the country has metamorphosed into meritocracy where there is opportunity for all. He never forgot his father’s advice — wherever you live integrate with the community that you are in, to the best of your abilities, but never forget your roots! "So I am proud to be a Parsi Zoroastrian, I am a proud Indian, and most importantly I am so proud to be British... In fact I could go so far as to say that in achievement per capita, the Parsi community is most successful in the world by far. The community has not only looked after its own but has also put back into the wider community,” he stated.
Where have Parsis in India faltered? Why are we squabbling? Where is the Parsipanu? Has it all immigrated to the West? Where is the pride, the zealousness for our country? Why haven’t we been able to bring back the pioneering spirit? We don’t live in India as an ethnic, alien community. We have still preserved the sugar in the milk, so to say, but somewhere lost our way to resignation, lack of ambition, and plain, simple laziness!
Our own people who leave India are prospering economically and culturally, so what stops us from doing the same here? There are hardly any Parsis worth their salt in the Indian armed forces today. Why don’t we serve our country by taking to politics? We need to get answers to these questions. We must wake up and go forward in the name of Ahura Mazda. The madness of unnecessary orthodoxy is taking a toll on us. It is time we think along rational lines and make India and our community proud! Let’s take a cue from Bilimoria.

RODA D. HAKIM
Baroda
vadhakim@yahoo.com