Bharat Ratna for Sports and Entertainment

So the Ministry of Home recommends that the scope of the Bharat Ratna be widened to include sports and entertainment.

Sachin Tendulkar is the prime contender for this honour. The day he scores his 100^th century will be the day India including the Government will go hysterical. Tonnes of newsprint, hours of T V and Radio time, , millions of SMSes, fireworks all night to accompany to crates of beer… celebrations, cheer…

Of course ,there is plenty of reason why India will do that. A nation starved of heroes will celebrate the one hero who touches such dizzy heights.

Sachin IS a master batsman, and a dedicated sportsman. His love of India is second to none. He has entertained millions in the last 20 years. But, always, it looked as if he was playing for himself. His goals appeared personal, not the team’s. The team came first when as a 16 year-old he got a masterful century in England to save a test match for India. Later The two knocks at Sharjah—operation Desert Storm—in two ODI matches stand out for a national zeal. Remember how cut up he was when Rahul Dravid, as Captain, declared the innings closed with Sachin four or five runs short of a double century? A captain’s decision concerning the state of the match should never be contested. Sachin has learnt to be careful with umpires… may be with captains, too, now. But all said and done, the passion of a Kapil, the controlled aggression of Anil Kumble, the strategic calm of a Dhoni… in service of the country, seems to leave a little something desirable in Sachin.

This is not to suggest that Sachin not be honoured with a Bharat Ratna. He has done enough to deserve the signal honour, and more. The issue is whether the scope of that honour be enlarged in such a way that significant contribution to India’s overall image rather than the significance of the individual is the accountable criterion

Sportspersons and Entertainers contribute as much, as politicians and cultural icons do, if not more. Sachin qualifies for his gallant twenty year cricketing career , indeed lore; Vishwanathan Anand’s distinguished career as the Chessmaster must surely stand the test equally well. Cinema, the defining art of the twentieth century and of this stage of the twenty first century boasts a Naseeruddin Shah, whose range is amazing and growing all the time. Balraj Sahni deserves a posthumous award.

There must , however, be some proviso. Has some one built an academy for nurturing more talent in his field of excellence or invested from his considerable resources in some educationally, medically, socially relevant cause or trust? Please don’t say association with AIDS awareness campaigns or animal rights activism.

For such tokenisms we have an extraordinarily efficient bunch of politicians -- the games they play are by far the most entertaining part of India’s public life.

Let our sportspersons and entertainers invest a part of their energies to the making of a more viable and vibrant society. The Bhart Ratna will follow them to the ends of the world .