Issue 67 Vol III, July 15, 2008

A R T  &  L I T E R A T U R E

Mismatch between material growth and cultural advancement
D.R. Chaudhry

CULTURE till recently was identified with cultural effects- fine arts, music, literature, etc. However, culture is too problematic a term to be confined to a specific area or to admit any simplistic definition. Raymond Williams rightly defines culture in terms of whole way of life of a society. Culture is not a finished, static thing. It is a process as Williams reminds us, that has continually to be renewed, recreated, defended and modified. Culture plays a highly significant role in shaping society and its socio-political life.

Since Haryana laggard in the economic field as a part of the composite Punjab, economic development received all the importance after it acquired its separate statehood in 1966. And in this field Haryana made rapid strides. It underwent Green Revolution and developed first rate physical infrastructure – roads, telecommunications, educational institutions, health services etc. However, there is a crisis in every field now. The Green Revolution has reached its plateau and the infrastructure is decaying. Agricultural crisis, mounting unemployment, rising crime graph, proliferation of the bureaucratic apparatus, widespread corruption- all these have pushed Haryana to a brink of a serious crisis.

The developmental model followed by Haryana government so far has created serious imbalances. For instance, Gurgaon, with its majestic malls, high-rise and swanky residential complexes, resembles Singapore or New York. However, at a small distance from it, people in Mewat are living under primitive conditions. There are palatial houses in HUDA colonies with all modern amenities in some towns, but the village at a stone’s throw is a veritable hell with its streets clogged with mud, swarms of flies and mosquitoes on heaps all around and human beings and animals living cheek by jowl. This skewed developmental model was accompanied by a total neglect of culture.

Harmony between material growth and cultural advancement is an important prerequisite for a state to grow into a healthy entity. However, in Haryana there has been a dissonance between the two. The hiatus between material growth and lack of corresponding cultural advancement is the major contradiction being faced by Haryana society. Unless this contradiction is resolved creatively, Haryana cannot develop into a dynamic organism.

Almost everything necessary for the growth of healthy culture is lacking in Haryana. Instruments that enrich social life are just missing. There are no newspapers and periodicals of repute with local roots. The gap has been filled by mega-chains from outside. There is no film industry, no theatre movement at the state level. The Swang, once a popular folk theatre in Haryana, is now fast degenerating into obscene Ragni competitions. There are no literary or cultural organizations worth the name. Punjabi was once a dialect like Haryanvi. Now it is a fully grown language with rich literature. Haryanvi dialect is what it was several centuries back and Haryanvis have not gone beyond the Ragnis of Pandit Lakhmi Chand and Jat Mehar Singh.

A statehood of its own, growth of metropolitan centres, reform movements, emergence of enlightened middle class are some of the factors necessary for the development of culture, language and literature, a certain level of socio-political consciousness and an identity of its own in any state. These factors have been largely lacking in case of Haryana.

Delhi, being the capital of the country, could not permit a powerful state on its periphery- Bharatpur being the only exception. In the absence of statehood in the Haryana region, there was no flowering of feudal culture which could lay the foundation for the future growth in this field. Haryana grew in the shadow of Delhi and hence its growth has remained stunted. Though Haryana surrounds Delhi from three sides, its presence in the metropolis is hardly felt. People from distant states like West Bengal, Kerala and Tamilnadu living in Delhi have their socio-cultural organizations, educational institutions etc. while Haryanvis have none. The major contribution Haryana seems to have made to Delhi is in the form of providing drivers, bus conductors and policemen . Haryanvis in the higher echelons in Delhi are only a few.

There did not grow metropolitan centers in Haryana. Most of the towns in Haryana are extended villages with modern amenities. The people there lack metropolitan ethos and their sensibility is grounded in narrow, partisan vision. Lahore was a metropolitan city in the composite Punjab. Most of the political and social movements started from there. One cannot think of Bengal without Calcutta. The same can be said of Chennai in Tamilnadu. There is no such town in Haryana. Its rulers and policy makers have not even cared to have a separate capital for the state which, in times to come, could grow into a metropolis.

Haryana has been unfortunate in matter of reform movements. Buddhism fought against anachronistic, cults, rites and rituals and caste had no place in its worldview. It laid utmost emphasis on reason and rationality in guiding human conduct. However, Haryana region seems to have missed its impact. In medieval times the Bhakti movement through saints like Guru Nanak, Dadu, Kabir and Ravidas became a vehicle of protest against numerous social evils, providing a voice to low caste people in society. Their preaching and songs were in the spoken language of the people which helped grow local dialects into literary language. This movement was very weak in Haryana region and this is one of the reasons for Haryanvi dialect for not acquiring a literary dimensions.

The Arya Samaj was the only reform movement which influenced this region. However, it spread here when it had lost its idealism and vigour, Thus, the backward looking tradition of the Gurukul was more popular here than the forward looking tradition of DAV institutions which played an important role in the spread of modern education in the Punjab region. Haryana landscape is dotted with gurukuls, most of which have become hot beds of right reaction and conservatism.

The Indian renaissance, howsoever half baked it was, did not touch this region. Its impact and the influence of modern ideas remained comparatively weak in the Hindi belt around Delhi. This was a big cultural failure in the Hindi belt and more so in case of Haryana.

The above factors inhibited the growth of forward looking middle class in Haryana. Here the growth of middle class took place when its idealism had started petering out. This explains Haryana’s comparatively low participation in the freedom struggle. This was further compounded by the dominance of the Unionist Party which was in collaboration with the British colonialism, its major contribution to provide relief to the debt ridden peasantry notwithstanding.

The affluent sections in Haryana today display all the trappings of modern life but they are sadly lacking in modern sensibility. Modernity treats an individual as an autonomous entity to be judged on the basis of one’s performance. One’s linkage to a particular religion, caste or family is of secondary importance. In Haryana, preponderance of caste and the role of the Khap Panchayat negate the very essence of modernity.

Civil society in Haryana is very fragile. Authoritarianism operates at every level- from family to the state government. A state in such a milieu ends up as a fief of an individual surrounded by a pack of fixers and quislings.

Material advance coupled with cultural cretinism has played havoc with socio-cultural life in the state. The phenomenon has created many distortions. Haryana, in fact, needs a cultural renaissance, a battle of ideas to come to terms with its historical backlog and do a mapping for the future. It is a long haul. However, there are no short cuts in history.

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