Powder…
There is a TV series by the same name. I watched it a long time ago, but there is a nagging urge to write on this topic now.
As you may have guessed right, the series is about how the NCB (Narcotics Control Bureau) tries to crack down on the drug mafia. How they defeatedly agree that it is always the small fry that get caught, but that nobody really has the gumption to bring the big players to task. They are required to produce the statistics of drug raids and arrests made to the higher officials and in government records. I guess, the small fry are as important too. There can’t be supply without demand.
Ancient India has a history of drug consumption. Opium and Cannabis top the list. As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, the poppy cultivation sky rocketed during the British era where they replaced food crops and then the same was sold to China in exchange for moolah and other goods. China went on to have stricter laws and regulations in the early 20th century to curb the menace. They were losing both their people and economy to drugs, but our country continued to produce it.
In certain parts of North India, it is still grown legally and other parts of North East illegally since the same is close to the Golden Triangle. In rituals like Holi, it is a custom in North India to consume Bhang, milk laced with Cannabis.
Whether to legalize medical Marijuana will remain heavily debated. It could be a serious concern if not strictly regulated like other psychotropic drugs.
I know a few people by now who have been lost to drug addiction either literally or figuratively. One of my sibling’s classmates was arrested for attacking a family in the neighborhood with a kitchen knife while high on the same. He was arrested and taken to a Remand Home since he was a minor at the time. An incident that will go to taint his image forever.
It is common in our country very disturbingly so for educational institutions to be a hub for drug consumption. My cousin would mention to me how in one of their dorm rooms, the medical graduates would smoke away like a chimney and no one batted an eyelid. Some of them are too scared to inform the authorities because nobody wants to be a snitch and get into trouble with their mates. And there is the whole peer pressure of fitting in rather than standing out.
Another friend of mine once mentioned in passing how a few of his batchmates asked if they could use his spare apartment for brewing pot. He flatly refused. I call the friends of an other cousin of mine, ‘Charsis’ translating to ‘druggies’. Amazing buddies to him and will probably show up at any time any hour if called upon, but equally down the spiral on substance abuse. Considering I already know of plenty such examples, it is a little difficult to believe that the concerned authorities do not.
When kids or youngsters from well to do families are caught with drugs on them, it is just one thought that plagues me. Why would someone want to spoil the fruits of their privilege instead of using it as a means to further themselves? Any other responsible kid would be spending hours honing their craft or indulging in useful hobbies if they can afford the privilege of not having to make ends meet or build a roof over their heads. An idle mind is indeed a devil’s workshop.
Bollywood whenever confronted always has the same denial story or the creatively challenged ‘for creativity’ excuse. We only know of a certain mainstream actor who was caught with cocaine on him and never saw him on screen post that. Hollywood I guess have lost many a stars to drug addiction. From Mathew Perry to Prince, the list could go on. Honestly I wouldn’t care much if individuals smoked away to oblivion. It is sad, but is limited to self harm. However, when they turn into drug peddlers, not just consuming but also distributing drugs or being a nuisance to innocents around them and wrecking other lives in the process, that outrages me. To me that is unforgivable.
I recently mentioned the movie, Munnabhai MBBS in a post only for the news that many of the scenes of the movie are a rip off of ‘Patch Adams’, to go viral. I still like the movie obviously, but knowing this piece of information was a bummer of sorts. Our industry is known for ripping off content and then packaging it as their own. I hope now that ‘Powder’ is not a rip off some other Hollywood creation. Do not think so, though I do not follow much of Hollywood. That reminds me, I am yet to watch ‘Narcos’.
As per scientific data, that thing some of you smoke does shrink certain areas of your brain. To come up with something original, try less powder next time.
