Thursday, December 16, 2010

My thanks to KBC

The KBC season is over and has left behind a few crorepatis and some broken hearts. Yet, none can disagree that this extremely popular game show hosted by the legendary Amitabh Bachchan has broken new records in educative entertainment over the more than ten long years of its running. To me it holds a special place.
Hey, I am no ex-participant but an ardent admirer of the show. I attribute the ‘special place’ status to it for the role it played in transforming my way of looking at me. Good words are sometimes far more valuable than a bagful of greenbacks.

“There are four kinds of people. The fourth kind is the one who knows nothing and does not knows that he knows nothing. The third kind is the one who knows nothing but knows that he knows nothing. The second kind is the one who knows but is unaware that he knows and the first kind is the one who knows and is also aware that he knows.”


With the above words began one of the episodes of KBC season 1. When Mr. Amitabh Bachchan recited the lines in his baritone voice, they penetrated the very depths of my psyche. We all are human beings and we have our own lows and highs in life. One needs to be motivated when felling low. For me the motivation came from the game show that makes princes out of paupers. Allow me to explain the meaning of the lines.

The fourth kind is the one who is simply a fool. The individual is unaware of nearly everything. He has no knowledge to share with others, no zeal to learn from others and no method to prudently approach anything of concern to any normal human being. Moreover, the person is either in the false belief that he knows more than others or is foolish enough to think that the others are fools. Such people are highest in number. Neither is there anything to learn from them nor is there any use in teaching them.

The third kind is the person who although knows nothing but has the zeal to learn. For example, there are poor children who for some reason missed out on education but have the urge to study. People of this kind can be taught the basic things which shall automatically enable them to grow on their own later. The best part about such people is the fact that they are aware of their weakness which is half the battle won.

The biggest problem with the second kind is that they are unaware of their capabilities largely due to a lack of self confidence. They suffer from inferiority complex which makes them think that the others are far more powerful than them which may not be true. This problem makes their souls die a slow death. They need to be awakened either by circumstances or by someone from the first category.

The first category of people includes the geniuses. They are very well aware of their importance, specialty and existence. These kinds of people are very rare and their rarity makes them the perfect teachers. They are most needed for a society to function intelligently, wisely and smoothly. It is always advisable to follow the ideals of such a being.

At that time I realized that I fell in the second category. I recognized that I did have the potential to perform well but I was lacking somewhere. There were doors but I was either too lazy or too confused to enter. That episode of KBC changed me completely.

It is possible that the lines I heard had already been spoken somewhere but to me it was this show which redefined me as a person. So, thank you KBC.

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