MovieChat Forums > Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006) Discussion > Gandhiji's teachings

Gandhiji's teachings

posted 18 years ago by rohit4165
10 replies | jump to latest

Do Bapu's teachings have any relevance today? This was a question put up by people in many a discussions, but that was before this movie. I felt that lage Raho... did a reasonably good job in answering all the critics of Mahatma that his principles do not hold water in today's world. Ahinsa and tolerance can pay, and without any side-effects at that. Although they do not pay immidiately, you have to persist with them, patiently.

I understand that people will still be doubtful, but I am hopeful that someday they will also agree that there is no permanent solution apart from forgiveness. This is what every religion teaches, but bigots do not want to use their head. Nothing can be farther from religion than those who indulge in violence in the name of God.

Tell me honestly, which is more difficult, to avenge or to forgive? Count the number of times you have forgiven and the number of times you have taken revenge. Next time someone does you any bad, try to forgive him. Not just by not taking any action against him, but also by removing any ill feeling against him. Can you do that? I tell you, it is not that easy. So why not become the real strong person? I am telling all this from my personal experience. It is really hard to do that. I am not saying that I have been cent-percent successful at this. But atleast I have been trying.

I never thought that it would be possible to write this kind of stuff in a public forum. But LRM has made it easier for me to express such feelings. I hope that atleast one person will try to follow my advice. Believe me, I am an atheist. Or probably an agnostic. And I am preaching no religion. This is common sense, which is, well, very uncommon these days.

Long live Bapu and keep it up Hirani.

PS - I know, guys will disagree. Let your thoughts flow. Keep them coming.

Bande me tha Damm
Vande Mataram

[–] mrdee-1 18 years ago

Excellent posting!! I have read a lot about Bapu long before the movie and was pleased to see his messages in this film. Brilliant film-laughed and cried and danced!
I am very happy you took the message to heart and hope others will too!

[–] dheerajjadhav 18 years ago

Hey Bro,
First of all Thanks for this post !!!
Likewise for me too.I really loved to watch this one, as I have been able to identify myself.I've always been the straight forward guy all my life but it has got me conned a lot(well almost all) of times.I had recently started to really curse myself for not being able to deal with people in a so called Professional way.So I asked my self this one question, What kind of a surrounding would make you feel better in this nasty world ? And Bingo!! it was in LRM.I now understand that there are so many people like me in this world who really yearn for this sort of a atmosphere where people care for and be more humane and truthful.
This Film has reinstated my beliefs.
Hats Off VVC and Hirani !!!

Vande Mataram

[–] sadelite 18 years ago

I had been practising GANDHIGIRI long before this movie came out.This movie just made me realize it.It has always been effective.Hopefully this movie will encourage more people to resolve conflicts in rational manner.

[–] rohonnag 18 years ago

well think of it this way
diff things work in diff places

u cant goto kashmir and hold satyagraha, they will bomb everyone to death and then demand that the bomber be let free
do it agian , and they will continue, indefinately, because some people are CRAZY.

gandhiji's principles works well against as organisation, and civilized yet misguided people, society ETC,
i mean u can satyagraha against the government, injustice etc, it may work
but in some places you cant negotiate, thats were the bhagat singh formula works
and eye for an eye.

This is YOUR LIFE and it is ending one minute at a time!

[–] hurshykalsi525 18 years ago

OWW Rohit you nailed the topic bruhh! Before I begin, let me say that this movie kicked so much arse...hella funny, ingsightful and blindly uplifting.

To forgive or avenge? Very subjective, but im sure the majority of us will say its easier to forgive. Of course, tending to the situation face to face will cause a slight change in perspective (not for me however, mainly because im too lazy to avenge and i punch like a 2 yr old girl). Bapu was truly the most amazing human being ever created. I'm also agnostic as you put it Rohit. Lets start all the way from the beginning. Every human being is afraid of what happens to us when we die. We refuse to believe that our body rots six feet under the ground once our brains and hearts stops functioning. Its a scary thing to feel. Thats when all the philosophical questions such as "there must be something else other than our current life...I dont know, maybe something called AFTERlife? or transcendence? or a spiritual realm? something!!" We got desperate and decided its best to believe there is something greater than us which we generally call God. Muslims call it Allah, hindu's call it Ram, Christians call it The Divine Being....watever, its the same thing. Then came religion, which had nothing to do with the whole "I'm scared of death and i so desperately wanna believe in something that give me assurance of an afterlife". People get so desperate they devote themselves completely to this entity, kill people, kill themselves, do everything they possible can to make sure their selfish soul is in a divine realm....wherever it is, prolly Hawaii hehe. Basically I dont know what happens when we die, thats why im tryin my hardest to live a life without regrets....just incase we do rot when we die :)

This is where ghandiji's teachings come into practice. What he saw was a country of Indians that lived in a harmonious state. When the partition came, it broke his heart as much as it broke all of ours, mainly because we never understood how one could let a religion divide a colony of brothers and sisters. As hard as he tried to make people see reason, he was still assassinated. It was a stab in the heart for all of us, because he was a completely unbiased human being that wanted nothing but to make the world better and was still killed for it.

What im tryin to say here is like....the majority of us are good people. The people in power, the representatives whether it be government organisations or religious leaders, are horrible people. Everyone else starts thinking "if these horrible people are so rich and stuff, maybe i should try it too" and spawns a whole new generation of a sick, money-hungry immoral society. Ghandi was an example of having a moral obligation to your fellow man. People look upto him. We need more people like him, not only on the streets but people in power!! On podiums!! Stages and media all over the world!!! This is when people will watch and say "Wow, this man is so geniune, maybe this is what I should try".

Anyway, Lage Raho... was an eye opener to a select few, the majority of us will forget that there are taps and no water, there are beds but no doctors because we're so caught up preparing ourselves for an afterlife and wasting the current one we're living.

w00t longest thread ever hahaha sorry guys!! but this topic was right up my alley :)

[–] darshan_1906 18 years ago

First of all I want to thank you to bring out this topic, Rohit! I have got into this kind of conversations so many times and every time people wouldn't agree with me that modern problems can be solved by GANDHIGIRI. But every time I tried my best to explain what REAL GANDHIJI'S TEACHINGS are. Sometimes I really find it shameful that while whole world has started to learn about his greatness, we very Indians are the one (Gandhiji had dreamed a better future for us) defaming him! It's really touching when Munna is talking to those old people and says what should be told to a boy who was insulting Gandhiji's statue. Thanks to director to teach the modern youth about Gandhinian philosophy in a way they can understand. Every Indian YOUTH must watch this awesome movie!

[–] darshan_1906 18 years ago

Bande me tha dum
Vande Matram

[–] shweta2948 18 years ago

Excellent post by Mr. Rohit

I also believe the same. One can easily understand the current situation of the whole world, everyone is running behind the power and money and for that people have forgotten that, what is the real money; love, humanity, forgiveness, respect I consider all these qualities as real money.

Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra have done a good job. I think not many people will learn from it, but if atleast one person can learn then it will be a succesful attempt because

MAIN AKELA HI CHALA THA JAANEWAR MANZIL
LOG MILTE GAYE KAARWAN BANTA GAYA

VANDE MATARAM

[–] rohit4165 17 years ago

I am visiting this thread after a long time and feel that probably my effort was not in vain. Thank you all for your kind support. Spread the word, Gandhiji's teachings are still relevant.

We hear that Hirani is making another movie on Munnabhai. I hope he continues with this legendary character and teaches the world how to love each other.

Go alone even if there is no support, because as Shweta said

MAIN AKELA HI CHALA THA JAANEWAR MANZIL
LOG MILTE GAYE KAARWAN BANTA GAYA

Bande me tha Damm
Vande Mataram

[–] lil_linger007 15 years ago

The screenplay writer for this movie, Abhijit Joshi, is my Professor for my Modern Indian Culture class in the United States at Otterbein College.

He is having us write a paper on Ganghi's pillars of philosophy: Peace, Truth, Compassion, SImplicity, Decency toward the enemy, and non-violence, and how, if at all, they are relevent in todays world.

I really liked reading this discussion and reading other people's idea's if Ganghi's teachings are relevent today. If anybody else has more ideas on this I would love to hear them.

Also, i haven't seen this movie yet, but am going to rent it now and watch it. I just discovered what the title of the movie Joshi wrote was. He is so humble he didn't mention what his movie was, just that he wrote one and told us the plot.

"We are all damaged somehow"