'Western countries will come at bottom if...': Vivek Agnihotri on India's ranking in World Happiness Report 2023

Noted filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri has trashed the World Happiness Report 2023, which ranked India at 126 out of 137 countries it surveyed. Agnihotri said that this happiness index was 'crap' as the questions asked to measure one's happiness are Western. He suggested that Western countries would fare badly if people there are asked questions like, how many days they ate with their family and if they can depend on their family for a lifetime.    

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The World Happiness Report is a publication of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, powered by the Gallup World Poll data. As per a recent report, Finland is the happiest country in the world, followed by Denmark, Iceland, Israel, Netherlands, Sweden, and Norway. Afghanistan is the unhappiest country in the world. India is placed in the 126th position, behind Pakistan (108), Sri Lanka (112), Myanmar (117), and Bangladesh (118).  

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Following the release of the rankings, many have raised questions about the measures the agency uses to rank countries. As per the report, the agency has looked into the per capita income of an individual, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perception of corruption.

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As for generosity, the report asks people whether one has donated money to a charity in the past month. This, the report states, is a clear marker for a sense of positive community engagement and a central way that humans connect with each other.

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However, Agnihotri called the index a 'crap'. "All these Indexes are crap as their questions are so western. Ask Westerners “How many days in a week you eat meal with your family?” Or “Can you depend on your family for a lifetime?” And you will find most western countries at the bottom and India at the top of Happiness Index," he wrote on Twitter.

Author and scientist Anand Ranganathan, too, seemed not convinced with the report. He, in a tweet, said: "India is ranked 126 in the just-released World Happiness Report. Totalitarian Saudi Arabia is 30, War-torn Ukraine 92, Inflation wrecked Turkey 106, Begging bowl Pakistan 108, Bankrupt Sri Lanka 112."

UK's Daily Mail reported that interviews with more than 100,000 people across 137 countries revealed that people self-reported significantly higher levels of benevolence — acts of kindness — than before 2020. The report, it said, is based on people's own assessment of their happiness, as well as economic and social data.

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