The Lunar Tryst

 Vikram had become a part of the lexicon after Chandrayan- ll, named after the father of Indian space programme,  appropriately christened, though odds were heavily stacked against it succeeding in the first go. But our scientists were not cowed down by the challenge and rose phoenix like in a stupendous achievement, who have proved it yet again that we can do it when it matters. Moon matters are definitely worth the effort, after all the whole nation of 1.4 billion is 'over the moon' over this achievement. Social media went to town with all kind of memes doing the rounds, Raksha Bandhan or Rakhi being despatched by mother Earth to her brother Moon, being quite a  favourite. Mamas have a very affectionate relationship with their 'bhanja/bhanji' and their love literally overflows when it comes to these nephews and nieces. Since sisters are special for the brothers their progeny automatically assumes an even more special connect.  Chanda Mama was left with very little choice with 1.4 billion of us rooting for this, so much so that it just welcomed Vikram and the Rover Pragyan in its lap very gently. Having been a mute witness to the failed attempt four years ago when its predecessor just tumbled out and crashed, this one was even more special. This was no rabbit out of the hat trick, the supposed rabbit on the moon as per the Asian folklore has been sought out by the little 'Pragyaan'.

Some of us old timers would recall "Betal Pachhisi", the tale of King Vikramaditya and Betal the spirit. Most of us were introduced to this story by 'Chandamama', a very popular children's magazine those days. So the connection between Moon(Chandamama) and Vikram has a history. Each story or episode was essentially a part of the larger canvas, where Vikram was tasked to recover a corpse from a tree in the jungle, the spirit would thereafter narrate a story and ask him questions relating to the story with the condition that if he uttered a word, the corpse would return to the tree and if he did not answer the question despite knowing the answer, he(Vikram) would die. The stories were focused on the prevalent social norms and were tricky, leaving the reader curious and Vikram in a dilemma. But why am I narrating this tale here, well, it is the perseverance and determination of Vikram which stood out, every time the betal disappears with the corpse he would dutifully retrace his steps and again embark on the same journey. So persist we did against all odds and emerged victorious, temporary setbacks mere spur us on for further glory. That is the "Moon ki Baat".

Etymologically Vikram is essentially a Sanskrit word, with 'Vi' derived from Lord Vishnu and 'kram' meaning a stride/step, so a giant stride our Lunar probe Vikram indeed was. Lord Vishnu's strides span not just the earth but the universe as a whole.

There have been other great warriors and valourous individuals who have lived upto the name of Vikram, Chandragupt Vikramaditya the Mauryan King was another illustrious one. The most recent one of course was Capt Vikram Batra,PVC (posthumous),  "Shershah", the King of Lions, as he was affectionately addressed by the troops. His bravery and courage is now part of the folklore, "Yeh Dil Mange More" was his response after the capture of Tiger Hill during Kargil War. Yes we Indians aren’t satisfied with this, we demand many many encores... with Gagan Yaan (Manned mission) , Aditya  Yaan (Sun ) to follow even  space is no longer a limitation for us. 

FM radio channels not to be left behind have chosen to air only those songs which feature 'Chand' in the lyrics. So 'Chand fir nikla' is competing for space with 'Chand sifarish', 'Dekho wo chand karta hai kya ishare' to 'Chand si mehbooba ho' all are much in demand. In a lighter vein, with the kind of coverage which this Lunar success has been getting, it is surprising that Moon itself has not gone into an eclipse. Lunacy incidentally was supposed to be related to the phases of the moon as per Medieval beliefs, hence the term. Don’t be surprised if moon decides to descend on to sister Earth itself to let the Earthlings have a feel and participate in the endless debates on TV and clear the air once and for all.