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Outlook Ed-in-Chief
08-03-15
Vinod Mehta: Our
Tribute
fnbworld
Bureau/Ramawatar Sharma
It is
indeed a very sad moment in journalism with the
passing away of versatile editor Vinod Mehta. It
was in September 1995 that I became a paid
subscriber of the magazine to be launched during
October of the same year. Its name had an
attraction for me. Since then, it is full two
decades now I have been a regular subscriber of
that magazine, very appropriately called
"Outlook". And one person that kept my interest
going on in "Outlook" was its Editor Vinod Mehta.
I've never met Vinod Mehta but I know him very
well- he wrote freely about himself in the last
page of "Outlook" called Diary. And he was honest
when writing about himself. Though labeled
pro-Communist by many, he appeared to be on side
of logic, not any dogma or "ism". But he was,
definitely, not on right of the scale as far as
his personal opinions were concerned but he never
appeared to block the rightists and their opinions
in the magazine he edited.
He stood the ground as an editor
for quite a few publications that he strived to
establish – be it Debonair magazine or The
Pioneer newspaper. All of whom he had the courage
to print opinions that were against the tide of
time and also against the system and its handlers.
But that did not mean he was anti-establishment;
he dared to give space to voices when many other
editors were meek enough not to publish the
research based opinions against the systems of the
government or the organizations. He published all
the genuine stories, both for the system or those
opposing it. He was a man of humour and named his
pet dog as “Editor” and whenever he
wrote in "Diary", it always ended with a fond
write up about the activities of
“Editor”.
.
Vinod Mehta wasn't very happy lately as a
section of right-wing hardliners started debasing
him repeatedly. He wasn't an alcoholic but enjoyed
his scotch occasionally. It is sad that a fake
Twitter account @drunkvinodmehta was started where
he was unnecessarily abused for some fake
provocative write up in his name, of course, Vinod
denied it.
His autobiography "Lakhnow Boy" opens
many qualities of the man. He had a very humble
beginning and mediocre educational qualifications
but was adventurous by nature. A rise from a
factory hand in Britain to one of the most
powerful editors in India is not a small
achievement. And to stay there for decades is
indicative of his intellectual depth, his
detractors may call it "pseudo- intellectual"
one.
He may not be missed in present times but
to me, as a regular reader, he was an editor of
excellent qualities and a man worth keeping
company with. He penned so much of truth on the
last page of "Outlook" that his invisible shadow
would loom large for years over the readers who
hold editor Vinod Mehta in reverence for a long
time.
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