July 28, 2014

Why I had chosen journalism

In July 2008, as part of the admission procedure at my journalism college, IIJNM, I had to give a small write-up on why I wanted to be a journalist. I found that piece today among old documents on my computer in my hometown. Hahaha... I had joined journalism to change the world, but what did I do as a journalist in my 4.3 year-long career? I'll come to that in a later post. As of now, let's have fun reading an unrealistic young idealist's Utopian dream, written in poor English, pasted here verbatim. It starts on such a narcissistic note!

Why I Want To Pursue Journalism
& What I Hope To Achieve Through It

95.69 percentile in MAT – the candidate would get admission in any good b-school he wants (isn’t it?), can opt for a lucrative career as MBA. If he decides to let it go and goes for journalism, much less rewarding in terms of pay, it is clear that the individual’s passion for the chosen field exceeds his preference for luxury and money.

I’m very keen to join journalism. I want to be a very popular and influential writer who’s capable of awakening masses and charge them up. I’m very patriotic in nature, I love my country very much. That’s why it hurts to see how this country, once known as ‘The Golden Bird’ has deteriorated in every sphere. 60 years past independence and we’re still a developing country.

Basic amenities like food, cloth, shelter still inaccessible to majority of population. We in Mumbai house Asia’s biggest slum. Millions live below poverty line, millions still illiterate; despite the overtly leniently set limits for both. 60% of our population living neglected and overlooked life in villages. We produce surplus food, yet thanks to ill management we’re facing crisis. Communal harmony, concept of equal society still a distant dream.

High corruption, bureaucracy, red-tapism, complacency are all taking us down. For what we are, where we are today, we, the common people are as much to be blamed as our politicians.

As a journalist, I wish to bring up
all such issues into conscious and subconscious minds of our middle class (the most influential section in any democracy) and make them lot more active, aware and involved in our democracy… To bring upon the necessary changes and turn our potential into performance, to bring back the “legacy” to the name I N D I A.

~The end~

P.S. To meet my objectives, I needed to learn not journalism, but Godism. 
Hahaha...