Magsaysay Award winner ‘journalist’ Ravish Kumar has now doubled up as love-guru as he mansplains a captivated audience what kind of men women should fall in love with. While short answer according to him is a BJP supporter, long answer in his monotone has quite a few problematic generalisations and quite frankly, an assault on sensibilities. Ravish Kumar was speaking at ‘Talk Journalism’ event in Jaipur last week where he was perhaps giving a glimpse to his own mindset.
In a 6-minute clip shared by Madhya Pradesh Congress, Ravish is seen dishing out pearls of wisdom to young girls on the kind of man they should fall in love with.
नफरत फैला रहा है कोई,
आपको पड़ोसी से लड़ा रहा है कोई,
कमल पर मतदान की इतनी सजा,
गोडसे को देशभक्त बता रहा है कोई..! pic.twitter.com/MjCQw2gmZ4— MP Congress (@INCMP) September 26, 2019
Ravish starts off which saying how everyone has gone ‘silent on Swami Chinmayanand case’ where the former union minister has been accused of raping a girl. While fact is, Swami Chinmayanand case has been all over the place, covered by everyone. He then says how a case filed against Azam Khan for stealing a goat is debated for hours.
Ravish Kumar says some men like to see their neighbourhood Muslim as an enemy. Just to be clear here, Azam Khan is currently an MP and is declared as a ‘land mafia’ and has over 80 cases against him, including that of stealing goats. Perhaps Ravish would like to explore the idea that the cases against Khan are filed not because of his religion but because of the fact that those are crimes?
He then mansplains to women that if a man shows hatred towards a section of society can not be a good husband, a good lover or a good brother. “Do not marry any IT cell worker,” he cautions. “While one should not give dowry, but if your parents give some money secretly then you’ll lose money as well,” he says to a cheering audience. In his one hour address, this is not the only time he has mentioned dowry. He had also casually joked how the fathers of audience members would have also taken dowry to marry their mother. While humour is often considered a way to highlight social evils, the fact that Ravish is so obsessed shows a glimpse into his own thinking. On an aside, Ravish Kumar’s brother, Congress leader Brajesh Kumar was accused in a sex scandal which reportedly ended with a ‘compromise’.
This is not the first time Ravish Kumar has tried to show his disturbed mindset by disguising himself as a feminist.
Why does Rubbish insist on talking in English? But his last question is very pertinent, I want to ask that question to his wife, how can she stay married to a guy with a constantly constipated countenance and an irritating laugh like that? pic.twitter.com/QayuxlzWDp
— Shefali Vaidya ஷெஃபாலி வைத்யா शेफाली वैद्य (@ShefVaidya) September 7, 2019
Soon after his Magsaysay award, while answering an audience question Ravish Kumar very casually says how he sometimes asks girls how can he marry an Indian boy. “Full of caste, feeling, full of bias, full of patriarchy, how can you love them?” he asks. A bit rich coming from the man who praises a magazine which tried to divide the Indian Army on caste lines. According to Ravish, dividing the Army on the basis of religion is wrong but asking the families of martyrs “Kaun Jaat Ho?” while they are grieving is an example of path-breaking journalism.
Remember, Ravish Kumar has no qualms in asking people on screen what caste they belong to.
On one hand, Ravish Kumar communalises the law taking its course against politicians by investigating the allegations of crime against them and on the other hand, he cautions the audience to not fall prey to communalisation. Ravish Kumar really can’t make up his mind.
