Almost all of us in PR business these days are facing budget blues. While the conference rooms are remaining empty waiting for the press, our mailboxes are full of media requests for pre/post budget comments waiting for us to press the forward or reply buttons. Self-proclaimed Management Guru, Shayar, Rabdipati and incidentally our Railway Minister Lalu presented the not at all required railway budget and ruined one of my required media conferences. You know what? Many of these politicians affect our life knowingly or unknowingly for the worst. They block the roads while they travel; sometimes even force the pregnant ladies to give birth to children on their way to hospital and stop the ambulances carrying critically injured accident victims too! Enough of professional politicians but the politicians in our profession are no different. They also tend to get inspired by these cattle-feed eating and effigy burning breed and make our life miserable.

Mumbai is getting hot these days and the hotel opposite to my office is getting ready to host a wedding of one of the top politician’s son and they are covering the entire approach road with ‘shamiyana’ for their VVIP guests. I wonder how come all such humble servants of public have all the money in the world to spend on lavish weddings and parties but don’t have a single paisa to donate to poor and needy. Sometimes I also wonder that how come some of our politicians in the profession have all the money in the world to take client out for dinner in one of the best five star hotels of the city, but wouldn’t have money to give a loan of just five thousand to a needy office boy for his daughter’s admission!

I was talking to one of my dear friends (and incidentally a client) last afternoon and she mentioned to me about her past experience with one of India’s (in)famous agencies and equally notorious senseless (but sen-visible and invisible!) head of the branch. How he played Peter against the Paul and took credit for every good deed done by the team and passed on blame for each of his mistakes to the juniors. The list is endless and I don’t want you to get carried away just like I did, while I was talking to her. But honestly, my dear reader – do we really need such people in our profession? Why do we have such wrong people at right places? What is it? Is it destiny or their ability to play the right cards at right moments?

I am not saying that we don’t have such politicians across industries, we have enough of them. I have seen them. I have interacted with them. But in an industry where the only capital you can have is human, why such inhuman behaviour? Why do you have to be a lazy brainless monster that likes some species and doesn’t like other? C’mon ladies and gentleman! We have enough battles to fight before we find our rightful place under the sun. We need soldiers and warriors. We need young blood to come and join the forces! Don’t give such a bad name to PR that people move away from us and join others.

Hey my dear God, I hope (high hopes!) this war-cry will serve as a wakeup call for some of those politicians and bring in the much needed change in their behaviour rather than converting many of their followers into bloodsucking vampires. Just like them. Amen!

I would be happy to receive calls from CEOs and top bosses clarifying their position on this post. Confidentiality will be maintained. Just as I did, when my post on Vikas’s problem flashed on our blog, I got as many as seven calls from agency heads wondering whether I was referring to his or her agency!

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