While working with a company called MOKA in 2007, I was asked to work on a ’small’ project that involved promoting Barack Obama’s Presidential campaign in the United States.

I didn’t know who Barack Obama was, didn’t care about politics whether Indian or American and most of all, found the person’s name rather QUIRKY.

The only thing that I recall about American politics was the stand-up comedian, Frank Caliendo’s imitation of George Bush which was deprecating and cynical to a large extent but was really funny and clever... thanks to a good time spent keenly observing the President.

People often express their deepest emotions through humor. And it left me with a feeling that there was a serious divide amongst the American People... very bipartisan in nature... which Obama was very vocal about...

Interestingly, in order to complete the project, I was asked to take excerpts from Barack Obama’s bestseller, The Audacity of Hope. So, in order to do that, of course I had to read the entire book.

My first impression was, another politician’s boring autobiography! Well, but once I was in the second chapter... I was like... Wow!

To cut a long story short, I finished the book, the project and my company didn’t get the contract it wanted.

But what I really found from reading that book really was that there is always hope no matter what. That really spoke to my heart on a personal level. It touched me like no other book has. The man is obviously gifted both intellectually and rhetorically speaking, and what makes him so remarkable is that he exudes honesty and a calm sense of dignity in talking about politics, his personal life and his vision which I gleaned from the book.

I just felt that the man had the “stuff” that legends are made of. For one’s values determine the course of his/ her life.

And this morning when I watched the U.S Marine band playing ‘Hail to the Chief’ at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C at the Presidential Inauguration on January 20, 2009 where Barack Obama was sworn in as President, I felt so strongly that this was the first step to an America that we’ve always known and loved. Perhaps, this is the America that George Carlin wanted! Who knows?

As the President was asked to repeat the words: I, Barack Hussain Obama... I remembered what he wrote in the book about how people were wary of affiliating themselves with him as his name Obama rhymed with Osama of the notorious 9/11 episode.

And I felt inspired that a man against all odds has risen above his challenges and the country’s circumstances to take charge of America’s destiny as the forty-fourth President of the United States.

As far as I’ve read the news, a couple of thing that really caught my attention was that he changed the way fund raising for election campaigns have been run by only accepting small donations from individuals as well as his clever use of the Internet in the campaign efforts.

The old principle of ‘Divide and Rule’ is gone. His emphasis for a change in spirit by showing unity in diversity is not just empty talk but he has demonstrated that ever since he was a Senator by working with both Democrats and Republicans, or trying to bridge the existing gap between these parties. The account of the state of politics is mentioned with numerous examples in his book, The Audacity of Hope.

It’s time that everyone worked together to build a better tomorrow. For a real change and a complete transformation of the United States at both the individual and the collective level.

I might not be an American citizen, nor have I lived in the U.S but one thing I do know is that the man is inspiring, in his words, deeds and by the example that he shown, by showing faith, courage and hope that the world can be a better place, if we set our differences aside and stand as one.

Indian politics can really do with a Barack Obama right now!

I leave you with an excerpt from his Inaugural Speech, that I’m sure has personally inspired the millions around us even more than ever:

“So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

“Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it].”

BRAVO... President Obama! It is hope and virtue that defines the human spirit and that can only reveal a new way forward.

A new and brighter day has indeed dawned for America and its choices. And Barack Obama is the first one towards a better tomorrow. :)