There was a time when Diwali was more light than sound. Irrespective of community, all children played with the phuljhari and pataka that made some noise but not with the frightening decibels that are heard these days. A day or two before Diwali the bombs begin to burst. For many perhaps there’s a psychological angle to the love for loud noise that can even shake up the foundations of a house. Was the bursting of crackers a part of Hindu religion? Gunpowder used for crackers and bombs were first discovered in China and were brought to India during the Moghul period. So how is burning crackers a Hindu tradition? Burning diyas is more in sync with the theme of Diwali – the festival of lights. It is uncanny that people in this country break the law with impunity and then blame the law enforcers for not implementing the law. In Meghalaya there is a time beyond which fire crackers cannot be burnt but no one bothers to obey. Fire crackers are burnt until the wee hours of morning, rudely awakening those in slumber. People don’t even respect the need for silence around hospitals and don’t care that dogs and other creatures are petrified by the noise of crackers, especially those with loud booming sounds that are an assault on the ear drums.
Psychologists have shown four main themes relating to the enjoyment of loud sound: They include arousal/excitement, facilitation of socialisation, masking of both external sound and unwanted thoughts, and an emphasis and enhancement of personal identity. Some studies also found that sound levels appeared to increase gradually over the course of the evening until they plateaued at very high decibels as the night progresses. Other studies on why some individuals itch to make loud noises is that it is a public announcement of personal joy by miserable attention seekers. It’s almost like the attention seeker wishes to announce his/her existence through loud noise. Others are just self-centred and care only about their own fun and couldn’t care less how it affects the neighbours, particularly the elderly and the sick. For some insecure people, noise is an expression of machismo. They think that producing loud sound is an act of gallantry when all that the noise is hiding is pomposity. Crackers announce India’s cricket win as if announcement on radio or television is not enough.
These days it has become the norm for the Hindutva brigade to defend to their death the right to burst crackers. These are political fanatics making a political statement that India is their country and they have every right to do what they want even if the air quality deteriorates to its most toxic point as it has in Delhi. Religious fanatics have grown in numbers in this country and secularism is being eroded. But who cares when religion has become a powerful political tool? The tragedy in India today is that even the judiciary bows to the will of the majority.
