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Society & Culture Around Town Book Excerpts Vigyapanti The Dating Story

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Opinion National Interest PoV 50-Word Edit

ThePrint On Camera Videos In Pictures

Society & Culture Around Town Book Excerpts Vigyapanti The Dating Story

More Judiciary Education YourTurn Work With Us Campus Voice

India’s endless loop of babas is powered by daddy issues, mythology. And now social media

Even after Asaram and Ram Rahim, why does India continue to be obsessed with the baba phenomenon? Part of this is basic daddy issues.

It started with the arrest of Ashok Kharat, Nashik’s lecherous astrologer. In the weeks since, videos of various babas began popping up on X and Instagram, often with the caption: “There’s a new baba in the market, guys.” Some of these were old, others new. It’s almost like Matrix’s Agent Smith. You down one, and ten others pop up in an endless loop of a self-replicating virus-like programme built on a combination of tech and manipulation.

The baba industrial complex is similar. There’s a new friendly neighbourhood baba popping up on every corner, every other week.

Each of these religious-spiritual-comical leaders has their own grift. One popped out his tongue, held his body taut, and hit a series of poses in rapid........

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