Recently
star couple Kareena and Saif Ali Khan Pataudi became parents of a baby boy whom
they named Taimur. What followed was an eruption of reactions on the social
media circuit. While some ridiculed the couple for naming the baby after the
notorious Uzbek raider who raided North India during the 14th
century and unleashed a spat of plundering and killings that has no parallels
in the history of India. A popular liberal opinion that did the rounds on
social circuit was of the tune that it was a personal issue and people need not
interfere in it. Not long ago did the same liberals play mute spectators to
vandals pulling down a show of Marathi play ‘Mee
Nathuram Godse Boltoy’ by Pradeep Dalvi, vandalizing the theatre that
showcased it, notwithstanding the appeal of the makers to view the show before
jumping to conclusions just because the title carried the name of Nathuram
Godse the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi. After the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi
what was unleashed on the Brahmins of Pune, where Nathuram Godse belonged, was
anything but horrendous. When Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards,
whom she refused to be replaced despite security warnings in the wake of
Operation Blue Star, the Sikh community had to pay a hefty price to which late
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi referred to as an ‘expected’ reaction. Celebrated
painter Maqbool Fida Hussain had to withdraw his second movie ‘Meenaxi – A tale
of three cities’ due to outrage over a few references that the Muslim clergy
found outrageous and blasphemous from Islamic point of view. If the liberals
found it quite normal and acceptable then why are they being outraged now?
Mohammed Azharuddin landed in deep troubles when he extended his autograph to a
brand of shoes.Muslims were outraged for his putting the name of Prophet on
shoes. It was his autograph, his pen but not a single liberal felt it that way
then. Muslims on social media alleged they were being cornered simply because
they were muslims, a minority. But these so called liberal cornered muslims who
found Hussains ‘ Meenaxi’ and Azharuddins autograph outrageous never found the
fact that Mohammed Ghori and Mohammed of Ghazni carried the prophets name as
outrageous neither do they give a call to strip a terrorist, rapist or drug
peddler carrying the name Mohammed of his name or to boycott. Instead what we
saw was a huge turnout to bid farewell to Yakub Memon who was executed by the
Indian Government after a fair trial for his role in 1992 serial bomblasts that
killed and maimed hundreds in Mumbai! So is it surprising or illogical that
people are outraged that the star couple chose to name their newborn Taimur
someone who killed thousands ruthlessly raped and took Indian girls as sex
slaves to be sold in central Asian markets at throwaway prices? Despite being a
great scholar, musician, statesman and economist besides a great warrior and
devoted son and devotee of Lord Shiva no one names his son as Ravana. No one
names his son Hiranykashyap despite that fact that he was a great devotee of
Lord Brahma. No one names his son as Duryodhana
or Dushasana or Shakuni or for that matter even Pran just because he
played villain on screen but in reality was gentleman to the core. Why? Because
every parent wishes that if their child is going to be a super success at that
hefty cost which humanity can’t bear it’s better to have a mediocre offspring
who doesn’t become a burden on the society. True that there are Ram Singhs who
raped and committed heinous crimes but that wasn’t what their parent intended
when they named him Ram. And yes its an equal crime to name someone Ram,
Krishna, Mohammed or Jesus or Yesu or Yohanna or Moses if you can’t assure that
he will atleast not do injustice if can’t do justice to the name. But when you
name someone as Taimur or Tughlaq or Hitler or Genghiz your intentions are
bound to be questioned. What kind of parent would want his son to be a
plunderer and rapist? And what kind of person and society would take pride or
consider plundering and raping as an achievement a sign of masculinity?
Definitely a sick one and same goes true for those who justify it. Imagine if
someone named his son Nathuram or someone names his or her daughter Sadhvi
Pagya. Will it go down well with these so called liberal? Then how about a
public felicitation of Sadhvi Pragya or Nathuram Godse? Well it’s the
felicitators money his wish his personal issue what have people got to do about
it? If that isn’t okay, then Taimur is equally not okay.
Amisdst
all this chaos I went to see Dangal alongwith my family. It gave me a new
thought and I am grateful for that. Dangal elevated my thoughts to an
altogether different and new heights. Taimur plundered India true but what we
are doing is nothing short of splurging of whatever has remained. Amidst this
chaos Aamir Khan productions brings you story of man from a distant village in
Haryana who dreams to bring laurels for his country within his limited
resources and he is unstoppable in his passion. Germans rebuilt Germany that
was devastated in the first world war, French and Russians splurged their blood
to put things in right place in their respective countries but we what Indians
are doing is sheer mockery of nationalism. Sometimes we forget it in
regionalism sometimes we lose it to discriminations and many a times to our
personal agenda. But when you see a Mahabirsingh who defies all the social
norms puts aside all personal agenda and does the unthinkable from putting
girls in the wresting arena to fight men to eating what the forbidden and all
this for just that one moment of pride when the tricolour flutters in the
international arena above the rest to the tune of India’s national anthem.
Dangal churns your thoughts and the noble ones emerge victorious. Taimur loses
to Dangal and the Indian in you emerges a winner – ofcourse, if there is one!
- Bhushan Kumarsen Sarmalkar, Mumbai. 27th December 2016 (Tuesday)
