Aurangzebra is Zzz, say hi to Aurangutan

There's the dodo. And then, there's the aurangzebra. While both are extinct, India seems to be besotted of late with the latter - or, to be more accurate, talking about the aurangzebra. In 2025, while the rest of the world is busy harnessing animal spirits to drive innovation and economic growth, we seem to be fixating on this striped creature that neither needs attacking nor defending - because it hasn't been on this firmament for a long time.

Aurangzebras have become unofficial mascots of both harbingers of misfortune as well as of nostalgia. Hashtags berating the creature that has not been alive since 1707 invite further hashtags, if not extolling the zebra's virtues, then criticising its beraters. One would think that the aurangzebra's ecological damage is still palpable among us. Bollywood is bound to catch on to the box-office charm of aurangzebra-bashing and will have biopics depicting the villainous species, while 'liberal arthouse' producers will come up with some kind of Zebra-e-Azam franchise. Incidentally, today's un-aurang, normal zebras in our zoos look on, bemused, unimpressed. Perhaps it's time to let go of this aurangzebra obsession and embrace the real animal spirits around us. But taking swipes on stripes can, indeed, feel productive. Our suggestion: why not move on to railing against the also-extinct aurangutan?