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Tuesday, November 30, 2010

THE MUSLIM ANGLE

Its been a while since I had a go at activism and the last time I took a stand on an issue was when the auto driver refused to take me to Powai. What brings me back to the writing board then must be an issue that though I was aware of, that which I had dealt with on a superficial level in a documentary but which I had never personally faced before yet needed to be addressed. In the last week, it has finally happened to me and the magnitude of the gravity has seeped in. What I refer to is the fact that this secular country is home to some of the most communal people who deny a house on the basis of not any other logical reason but simply the fact that I am a Muslim.

Yes, there may be multiple excuses for this- me being a non-vegetarian being the most convenient and simple, but let us not allude ourselves that this is what it is about. It is something much more inherently rotten within the mindsets of the people that leads them to behave in this particular fashion.

I have looked at 20 houses, dealt with 6 brokers and been insulted around 40 times. One second tier broker takes the liberty to even say in Marathi"why did you not mention that it is a Muslim person who is looking? Wasted our time." It gets worse. Today when I mentioned that another person may be looking for a house too, the broker asks, "Is he Mohammedan too? If not, i have something upfront to show them." Its almost as if my Muslim status relegates me to the queue of non deserving people who cannot be trusted to live in decent societies. And it gets worse. When I finally manage to get a house and the owner is decent enough to not rouse the Muslim issue, he does mention the possibility that I may still not get the house because the so called "society" may not want a Muslim among them.

The question then begs to be asked- how is it a society if it is not even civil? While many may say it comes a package, i am not sure that simplistic appraisal works anymore. I have never been the idealistic or the religious Muslim but I am definitely a proud Muslim who has never been guilty of being born one. I am not starting now.

I don't see it as a failure for the Muslims, I see it as a failure of a country that refuses to grow up and accept its own people. The country demands an acceptance on the world stage when we, as its people are shallow enough to not even give it a shred of attempt internally. I lambast because I am angry, because I should not have to hide behind a false name to get myself a decent place to live.

The shocker is that while the documentary I made 2 years ago as my master thesis was based in Bangalore, the cases there were not as appalling as they are in the so called cosmopolitan city, Mumbai. It seems to lag by a 1000 years in its outlook and leaves behind even the generally considered 2nd tier cities in its conservative outlook and this is what bothers me. I don't expect it to happen to me in my birth city, I don't expect it to happen in a city i love so dearly, and I don't want it to happen to the city that is being hijacked by mind numbingly conservative elements like MNS who brew trouble for all the rest.

It's a case of one rotten apple spoils the barrel and I am afraid I love this city a little less every single day. Angst out.

11 comments:

  1. To be frank, I would never like a muslim to be my neighbor. People following the religion of islam are hypocrites.

    On one hand, all muslims are supposed to be equal. But on the other hand, Indian muslims do not have the same rights and priviledges as arab muslims in saudi arabis. Saudi immigration law prohitibts people from outside saudi arabia from owning land in Mecca. If Indian muslims are not allowed to buy property in mecca, why should they be allowed to buy property anywhere in India?

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  2. Tasneem:

    I sympathize with you on your anger regarding this issue. It is a pity that the society has come to this stage of almost racial profiling people (in some sense). Honestly, it doesn't matter if your angst is directed at a particular city. I would like to point out a few specific things.

    Most of the inferences that are drawn are statistical in nature. Most of the names of petty thieves, crooks and more recently terrorists are Muslims. It is just natural for the people who hear this to associate a Muslim sounding name to the aforementioned category of people. It indeed is annoying but one has to put up with it for following a controversial ideology with a liberal amount of Wahhabi ideology thrown in.

    Secondly, there is a deeper rot in the Muslim community which unfortunately is affecting a non-idealist and non-religious Muslim like you. Unfortunate, yes. But, there is no other option but to live with it. One rarely sees the middle class (liberal if they are) Muslims come out against the iron grip of the bearded Mullahs over the religion. You rarely hear people of your own religion lashing out against the religious leadership or even offering a constructive critique of the religious practices and traditions which are perhaps dangerous in a multicultural society. Shielding such people causes damage to broadminded Muslims like you. It is unfortunate that you point out that you don't see it as a failure for Muslims. I urge you to consider this and ponder over this.

    I understand the angst you have. I find it a pity that this incident occurred in my hometown. But, I guess the reason for this is probably elsewhere as I pointed out before. It is a reality of the times we are in and unfortunately we have to live with it.

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  3. So basically your point is you believe India is your country because you are a Hindu but not my country because i am Muslim? My concern never was what happens to me in Saudi Arabia because that is not my nationality but perhaps you also believe that i belong there just because i am Muslim. Muslims may or not be treated equally but werent all Indians supposed to be treated equally? Here's some food for thought: The entire country, including all communities, is dealing with reservations as a problem because of something that started as part of the unequal Hindu society and spread to others: The dalits.

    As for living with it, it is easier said than done. I also thought that the Indian muslims who complain are overreacting, never being personally subjected to it but i can on a very minute level, see what drives people to then turn around and react violently to their situations. With all my education, i just blog about it, the others take to more severe means. Its a vicious circle that is being ferstered in the country by the behaviour towards these people. I know enough moderate muslims, the media just doesnt cover them because it is not dramatic enough to be shown on TV.

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  4. To counter your points, one by one:

    I never said India belongs to Hindus only. Please do not read between the lines.

    Here is a common thing that connects Muslims, "the unequal Hindu society" you claim and the Congress: votebank politics.

    Yes. It is a vicious cycle as you said and is socially harmful. Does anyone have a solution? And yes, media is perhaps the biggest screwup that India has ever seen since independence.

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  5. Tasneem:

    People of different faiths are welcomed into India. But islam cannot fit in india. Because islam is nothing but intolerant arab nationalism. Muslims are taught to have loyalities towards mecca rather than their native lands.

    If you believe that the native inhabitants of the lands are kafirs who deserve to die, then please do not expect sympathy. Before you can earn respect, reform indian muslim society.

    The truth is that muslims are the new untouchables. Even dalits have a better status than muslims. I would prefer to have a dalit neighbour rather than a muslim. It is up to you to work towards changing it by campaigning for better values within your community. If not, you will always be suspected of being a terrorist.

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  6. Tasneem please ready my response on my blog. http://media-watch-india.blogspot.com/2010/12/false-victimhood.html

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  7. No jateksha, my earlier argument was not for you, that was for Chitrukut who obviously is small minded enough to present his logic in its present form. I agree with your rationale on why it happens, my concern lies in the way it ultimately plays out for the involved parties. As for "vivian richards, i wont respond at all, considering he hides behind an alias and for the record, cyberspace sympathy or that character will do nothing for me in the real life. The purpose of the blog was not garnering sympathy, it was an outright statement of facts in present day India, shameful as it. Sadder is, people instead of moving ahead and being scientific, are heading back to the days of the Aryans. And i also recommend, you attempt to wikipedia what a kafir is. I am not sure you get the concept.

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  8. Also, Mr. Richards, i personally wouldnt like living next to you myself. Much rather stay in a slum than next to a bigot like you.

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  9. Tasneem,
    I hope you got a chance to go through my blog. The days of Aryans were sophisticated both socially and economically. Every proud hindu would wanna get back that temperament, unless of course you yourself have made some efforts to read about the hindu heritage of this country.

    On Kafirs, as a proud muslim you should be in a position to explain it others rather shut them off saying search wikipedia. It means that either you dunno or playing the well crafted Al-Taquiya.

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  10. At this point, i think it is time to establish the difference: most of my best friends are Hindus and i am absolutely not a Hindu hater. If that is what comes across in the blog, then it may be an error of perception. I simply complain about a system gone awry. That can be any community with a bias.I for sure don't in any way support the Muslim fundamentalism either, I just expect every case to be judged on the basis of individual merit. A few Hindu fundamentalists don't put me off Hinduism, just a few Muslim fundamentalists shouldn't make you hate all Muslims.

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  11. I had a similar experience too. I wanted to rent a place near south Mumbai. Since I was on a tight budget, I decided to look for places in Byculla, on the eastern side of town, with a significant Muslim population. In every Muslim home I went, I was asked whether I eat pork. I said YES and I was refused the home. It happened in 15 homes before I gave up and decided to move to the suburbs. I went to a Jain colony. Same experience. They said meat-eaters not allowed (did not even ask what kind of meat). Finally I found a meat-eating Hindu family that was fine with my pork eating and occasional peg of whiskey, willing to rent their home to me.

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