From Devas to Bollywood, How the Definition of Hero Changed

A hero is any man or woman who refuses to live in an utterly passive manner. The word “hero” is far too often applied these days without much thought. If we observe the peripherals of life and the world around us, there would be nothing more misused than the very word “hero” or its adjective “heroism.” And that has resulted in the manifestation of a weird form of heroism in society.

The word “Heropanti” and the sentence “Jyada Hero mat ban” have become some of the most used phrases. What’s even more saddening is that those acts, which are classified within the boundaries of heroism, have nothing to do with the essence of the very word.

Thus, the questions that arise are: who is a real hero? What are the qualities that a particular being must possess that make them stand tall at the peak of humanity?

Bharatiya Culture

195 countries, and how blessed I am that I was born into a country with diversity all around me. And I can say it with command and pride. This is the land where saints, gurus, and even God-incarnated Avatars walked and played.

It fills my heart with an inexpressible joy that the number of heroes in my motherland, Bharat, is uncountable. Throughout Satyug, Tretayug, Dwaparyug, and even Kaliyug, for that matter, Bharat has always been blessed with one Yugpurush after another.

Purushottam Ram is the prime example of what and how a hero should be. He was the best (uttam) among men. That is why he is referred to as Purushottam, which translates as “Purusho mein uttam” (the ideal or noble man).

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The changing meaning of heroes

However, the definition of true heroes appears to be changing over time, and it is disturbing. It was around the 12^th century when invaders from around the globe started eyeing the prosperous and glorious land of Bharat. They looted our temples, stole our wealth, and distorted our cultural heritage.

There began the problem. And what made matters worse is that we are still suffering from the worst hangover they left on our consciousness. Some political parties, for the sake of appeasing certain sects and communities, cross all lines in glorifying those dacoits. The ‘distorians’ presented perverse form of history and de-lionised our history and culture. The Mughalised history white washed the Real Heroes of Indian civilisation. Heroes like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Maharana Pratap, Lachit Borphukan or Freedom fighters like Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Chandra Shekhar Azad were either willfully ignored or found a passing mention in our text books.

This cuts off our young generations from their civilisational roots and they fail to not only imbibe the important traits of these Heroes but also fails to understand the real meaning of HEROES. Devoid of substance, they fall for the trap of Western influence ‘cool’ trends and start whats been lately dubbed as HERO-worshipping, that has completely deranged Heroes.

Also read: Shyamji Krishna Varma: The Unsung Hero of India that PM Modi brought back to Mainstream

Unable to tell the difference between film and real life

Post-independence, political domination of Bhura Babus and the appeasement politicalal narrative to please a certain community stareted to malign the true heroes. And on the other hand film industry started to grow by leaps and bounds. Craze for movie stars began to define our society’s norms. Some directors and actors started peddling their horrific agendas through the most powerful medium called cinema. And it ended up creating a lot of chaos in society. These film actors started to define and become heroes in society.

Today, We are living in the 21^st century, where the medium of voice has become predominant all around. We as people are in utter confusion about choosing and discarding a hero, and unfortunately, we know it well. We are informed citizens and have a plethora of knowledge at our disposal that is unprecedented by historical standards. It is we who can choose to elevate the worthy.

With the vast knowledge at all disposal, it becomes our duty to pass on the unfiltered and unadulterated meaning of HEROs. It is time that we start imparting knowledge about the Devas who stood up against all evils, no matter what the consequences of it will be, or how powerful the evil appeared. We are the ones who have to choose the hero. In a sense, it is an opportunity to become mini-heroes ourselves. Let’s choose the best and bring back the glory of the hero archetype of Bharatvarsh.