29 Jun 2026 · 13 min
“Deshbhakti ki Polish” | Reading Harishankar Parsai’s Satire on Fake Patriotism | Hindi Gharana
In this video, I read out “Deshbhakti ki Polish” – a sharp satirical essay by Harishankar Parsai from his collection Nithalle ki Diary – and then talk about how it still applies to today’s corporate charity and “image polishing.” Parsai was one of Hindi’s greatest satirists, known for exposing corruption, hypocrisy, and hollow nationalism through humour and biting social commentary. The essay follows Kanchan Babu, a wealthy shop‑owner who starts polishing people’s shoes “for the defence of the nation” so he can donate that small income to the National Defence Fund – and, more importantly,…





