Of Pedicures and Manicures.........

What always makes us feel better... no matter what? asks a friend to a miserable "just-dumped-by-boy-friend" Elle Woods (played by the cute teethy Reese Witherspoon) in the 2001 comedy, Legally Blonde. The answer, of course is Pedicures and Manicures given that these gals are just in their early 20s. Pedicures and Manicures may be part of the popular American culture but Urban India is catching up quickly. And it is but natural, when affluence grows in a country. There is an amazing phenomenon, almost a disruptive innovation, that is sweeping Urban India and it is the morphing of barber shops into the more elegant sounding Salon & Spa places. Obviously, a socio-cultural revolution is afoot with the old lowly "neighbourhood nayee" "movin' on up" and gaining social status and respect as the beautician and therapist par excellence. For a Nation that has struggled with its caste system for so many millenniums but now at the cusp of gaining "developed nation" status, this is sweet news indeed. And urbanisation is ushering in these new paradigms. The father of the Indian Constitution, the very learned Dr. B R Ambedkar, said this of Indian villages, "What is a village but a sink of localism, a den of ignorance, narrow-mindedness and communalism". The idyllic romantic view of the Indian village is really only for the rich and well-heeled communities of India. For others, it is a miserable and lawless landscape sans opportunities and even human dignity. And this is even today in 2010! Urbanisation and modernisation is then one possible answer. The added benefit is the opening up of opportunities to move people off agriculture and to services and manufacturing, arguably more potent providers of gainful employment. This is where am pleased with the quiet agenda and execution by the UP government led by Mayawati over the past 3-4 years. They have made modernisation their single-point agenda akin to rural empowerment of the Modi government in Gujarat and law and order of Nitish in Bihar. Have over past few years espoused the cause of Ms. Mayawati despite poor media reports and even poorer PR. Her party seems to have some very good ideas on the social agenda and appear to be systematically moving ahead. Pls note that I do not for a moment condone some of the excesses she indulges in nor the corruption that the media is quick to play up. But look at governance per se. The very first Acts passed by the Mayawati Government in UP was to make English compulsory in primary schools, something that has not been in vogue since late 60s in that state. This is a big step in the modernisation agenda. The setting up of Universities, the focus on infrastructure esp. Highways and the wooing of industry topped by the announcement last week of a Megapolis along the Yamuna Expressway underscore the clear urbanisation / modernisation agenda. Huge spends on education and infrastructure in the UP State budget is worth noting. Think about it..... As Mahesh Rangarajan, noted political analyst, says, "a dalit walking into a rural bank is immediately marked and offered none or just the minimal of services. However, an ATM machine does not distinguish between a caste Hindu and a Dalit or any other denominations of people". Modernisation can be quite liberating to a large section of people!! Another big gap as we urbanise and try to move large segments of population from Agri to other sectors is the skills - soft and hard. The Planning commission estimates the need to skill up 500 million people by 2022 if we have to leverage India's much vaunted demographic dividend and sustain the National growth at 9% or more. This is a mammoth task given we lack the scale in terms of tutors and infrastructure. Here, the traditional village classes of potters, cobblers, blacksmiths are large repositories of skills. These important hand-skills are dying out as they become non-remunerative in the villages. These can easily be tapped to teach the youth. Additional external inputs on soft skills, industrial practice, safety may only be needed. However, the challenge of inculcating a sense of prestige and pride among the youth regarding hand-skills still remains. This is where the reference, in the first part, to the traditional barber re-inventing himself as a beautician comes in. True greatness can come only through an all-encompassing, all-inclusive mindset and agenda - whether it is people, institutions or Nations. And remember...... the next time you are in a Spa pampering yourself with a manicure or a pedicure, feel good 'cos you are doing your teeny-weeny bit to Nation building.........