Romancing a revolutionary!

I am not at all surprised when the modern day youth look a bit puzzled hearing the name of Castro. Lost in the virtual bliss of game consoles and mobile applications, there is little time to romanticise a revolutionary whom the world in general has forgotten.

Well, almost!

For us, in their mid-forties, who grew up as the first generation post-1971, Castro is inextricably linked to the fiery days of youthful idealism.

It won't be wrong to say that those periods of the mid and late 80's, when the anti-autocracy movement in Bangladesh reached a crescendo, countless young men, who made the asphalt their canvas for protest, looked at Castro and his late deputy, Che Guevara, for inspiration.

I admit, the dreams of the almost perfect social system, where equality would be guaranteed, did not materialise, but the fervent belief in the power of rising against the unjust did not have a whimpering end either.
The autocratic regime in Bangladesh came crumbling down. Castro, his revolution in the fifties, the overthrow of Batista in 1959 plus the endless defiance shown to the mighty USA, seemed in 1990, too real, especially on the streets of Dhaka.

Fidel Castro is now a frail man who touched 90 on August 13 while Cuba is eyeing a new era of thawing relations with her eternal nemesis, USA, but the romantic zeal plus the revolutionary fervour, in my opinion, is still there.
Perhaps the flame has dwindled to just a flicker, but it's there alright!

On his 90th birthday, the greatest tribute paid to the man and what he stood for can be through remembering how profoundly he touched millions of young, enlightened people all through the 70's and 80's.

Of course, more than twenty five years after the fall of the Soviet Union, the lustre of the socialist dream now appears frayed.

Whatever braggadocio capitalists resort to now, for certain sections of society around the globe, Castro's Cuba will always remain a symbol of rebellion.

Yes, we all love rebels and, in case we denounce them in public, inherently, there is always a place where we worship them.

Castro has very little say in modern day geo politics with Cuba not playing the role of a major socialist adversary.

Practically speaking, with rapprochement in the air, soon, this island nation may become the biggest spot for Capitalist investment.

Will the hammer and sickle finally fall then? Well, I don't think so. What may happen is a massive reform process within the economy, allowing the razzmatazz of consumerism to enter but with the Communist tag firmly in place.

Sort of emulating the Chinese formula. Get all the Capitalist pleasures, wear the best designer items, pursue individual comfort but do not question the authority.

To many, this might sound slightly undemocratic though it's rational to say, if such an approach brought prosperity for China then Cuba should not be an exception.

The thing is, the rigid format of socialist system which the world saw in the decades post WW2, has undergone some phenomenal transformations.

At the heart of this metamorphosis is the realization that as long as human society exists, the doctrine of ownership will dominate everyday life.

That socialist Utopia is just that…an embellished illusion.

Hang on, hang on, that does not mean we must cease to romanticise!

Life will become too prosaic once expectations become black and white.

Castro made Cuba carry on with the ideals based on which he triggered the revolution.

This has remained firm despite the fall of his greatest benefactor, the USSR.

Therein lies the success. Ok, Cuba did not become a major economic hub but definition of success is a matter of perspective.

What Cuba remains till today is the last place on the planet which has not been robbed of romance by the onslaught of ferocious bourgeois market culture.

Love using that words 'bourgeois', though in reality, the writer is one himself!

Cuba's face may soon begin to change. However, the role Castro and Cuba played in standing up to a mighty opponent will go on to provide rich reading on the history of 20th century socio-politics.

By the way, for fun, on his 90th birthday, one would like to recall all those bizarre plots the CIA reportedly conjured up to get rid of, what they possibly called the cigar smoking pain in the a**.

One plan involved taking advantage of Castro's love of scuba-diving by planting mollusk shells, containing explosives in the ocean when he was underwater, and painting them bright colors so that he would be attracted to them.

Another idea was reportedly planting a diving suit for him infected with fungus that would cause a lethal skin disease later on.

But the one which beats all plans is the one where a former lover was hired to murder him.

How riveting!

Once Castro was alone with her, he sensed the ulterior mission, casually handing her the gun to go ahead with the mission.

What happened? Well, we are celebrating his 90th birthday!

A honey trap who could not pull the trigger; he must have been a hell of a lover!

Don't want to kill the man who gave me such intense pleasure….now that's something worth living for another ten years, to reach 100.

Other attempts included using poisonous pens, exploding cigars, and bacterial poisons designed to be dissolved in his coffee or tea.

Reportedly, before the USA imposed trade embargo on Cuba, stashes of cigars were bought so that there would not be a dearth of the product at the White House.

True or false, it doesn't matter.

For a man who dreamt and carried out a revolution, stood up to his opponents with poise, had the gall to tell an assassin to go ahead and kill him, is someone who is not just any human.

He may not have wielded immense military power but there's something more appealing than weapons.

The charisma of the revolutionary!

Castro's Cuba is still a time capsule, many say, well, let's not be a cliché: how about putting it like this:

Castro's Cuba is where the gods still favour the romantic!