Chai means many things in many
languages, in many cultures. For us Indians, it is an inseparable part of our
daily lives, sipping it as and when we feel, sipping it while thinking, sipping
it while talking, sipping it while walking. Most of us cannot imagine our life
without it.
And like many other important
parts our daily life, we had taken Chai for granted as well. We realised we
could not live without it yet we didn’t give it its due.
Until Narendra Modi’s Chai idea
happened, now being implemented as ‘Chai Pe Charcha’, a full-scale electoral campaign
every week intended to connect almost 20 million people same day same time
using a mix of advanced and traditional communication technologies.
A mighty communication idea the
time of which seems to have arrived, especially after the good response to Modi’s
Chai-time-themed campaign!
And it has forced others to take notice;
irrespective of which class they come from – the tea-proponents or the
Chai-wallahs.
So, after discussing, dismissing
and disparaging, even the grand old party of India had to admit the impact of
the storm that is brewing in the mighty cup of Chai, and the time spent over it,
some of which Narendra Modi is seriously trying to corner in his favour. According
to the sources, the party strategists are burning the midnight oil to
counter the move.
Some strategists even suggested hitting
the support backend of the Chai-making process to prevent the further mobilization
of the Chai-time in favour of Narendra Modi and thus the currency of a
significant amount of votes in the poll-season.
It seems, inspired by this deep
thinking, a youth Congress team in Bhopal came with the uniquely unique idea of
establishing milk stalls distributing RaGa Milk in the name of Rahul Gandhi. Another
noticeable effort on this line is Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Lalu Chai stalls in Bihar
that offers free biscuits as well. Lalu’s Rashtriya Janta Dal is an electoral
ally of the Congress party in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
Whatever be the outcome of this
Chai-time strategy on electoral lines, it can ensure at least one probability with certainty – in case of a disappointing electoral fortune, it can be a good
enough part-time business opportunity.