Gory historic details or gore fest?

Razakar: The Silent Genocide Of Hyderabad (Telegu, 2024)

Director: Yata Satyanarayana

In her last major speech before her disposition, Sheikh Hasina accused those who opposed her rule in Bangladesh of being Razakars. The opposition took offence to this term and soon widespread mob throughout the land. Of course, it is not that that single incident brought down an elected government but a culmination of joblessness and unjust reservations for a select population group. In the Bengali psyche, Razakar is a pejorative term meaning traitor or Judas. It was first used during the 1971 Pakistan Civil War. The paramilitary group who were against the then-East Pakistani leader, Majibur Rehman, were pro-West Pakistan. After establishing independence in Bangladesh, Razakars were disbanded, and many ran off to Pakistan.

Around the time of Indian independence, turmoil brewed in the princely state of Hyderabad, which had been a province deputed by the Mughals from 1794. The rule of Nizam commenced since. That vast state of Hyderabad covered Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and parts of Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. In total, seven Nizams ruled Hyderabad. Barring the rule of the sixth Nizam, Nizam Mahbub Ali Khan, their rule saw much discontent, oppression and restricted liberty. Even before the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, in 1857, 1000 members of rebelling tribal members were hung unceremoniously on a banyan tree. In the present state of Telangana, there was a kingdom named Gond. Some British soldiers trespassed on their land and destroyed public property. The Gond members killed them. The British retaliated by hanging the leader Ramji Gond and others on a tree immortalised as the 'thousand skull tree'. 

Other hardships the people endured were high taxes, forced conversion and the inability to use their preferred languages. Before this, Telegu, Marathi, Tamil and Kannada were freely spoken. Then came the use of Persian and Urdu. 

When the British decided to pack up and leave, the 562 Indian states could join Pakistan or India or stay alone. Hyderabad initially wanted to be part of Pakistan. Imagine the logistics of having a landlocked independent state with the ideology of the enemy, i.e. Pakistan. The last Nizam gave Jinnah an audience, but his demeanour cheesed off the Nizam. Upon taking his seat, Jinnah sat with one leg crossed against the other and smoked a cigar. That, remarked the offended Nizam, was the end of their discussion. The Nizam vowed to stand alone, promising to develop Hyderabad to Turkistan, the apt replacement for the once splendid Ottoman Empire.

This much is known. India wanted Hyderabad to be part of India after two large chunks of land were given to Pakistan, but states made a deal with India-Pakistan. The Standstill Agreement in November 1947 gave the princely states a year to decide which side to opt for.

What happened within Hyderabad State is debatable. Though many of the gory stories that come out are denied by many journalists and historians, many swear of the atrocities that bordered on genocide that they had to endure. At the end of the day, it is a Muslim-Hindu issue. The deniers insist it was humanly impossible for a ragtag squad of Razakars to create so much damage. They blame the communists who were also trying to put footage into the state. It was a chaotic time. Peasants were rebelling, and landowners wanted to hold onto their lands. 

Hyderabad had a population of 15% Muslims, who ruled the majority Hindus. The ruling class also included Pathans, Arabs, and other foreign administrators. The frugal Nizam was, at that time, the wealthiest man on Earth, with diamonds and other priceless minerals under his thumb. When the Nizam wanted to remain independent, his yeoman, Qasim Razvi, the leader of a quasi-political party, clandestinely recruited radical volunteers to uphold Islam and prevent the fall to the control of the Hindu Rashtra. Razakar is an Arabic word meaning volunteer. 

Meanwhile, with his vast coffers, the Nizam procured surrender German weapons from the victors of WW2. Rifles and automatic guns were flown in via Pakistan with the help of arms dealers. One such person was Frederick Sidney Cotton, who was supposed to transport Qasim Rizvi out of Hyderabad when the Nizam fell, but Cotton left him behind.

 Sadar Patel was the leading man behind the liberation of the people of Hyderabad. 75 years later, the correct nomenclature for this exercise is still debated: whether it was a liberation of the state or the integration of the State into the rest of India. Nehru and Patel tried to dissolve the tension amicably through negotiations. K M Munshi was sent as a negotiator. When all talks failed, and the cry of the people of Hyderabad reached screeching levels, Patel and the Indian Army with the airforce moved into Hyderabad under what was called 'Police Action' in Operation Polo, disobeying the Standstill Agreement. Hyderabad was annexed into the Indian Dominion on 17th September 1948.

Qasim Risvi was charged with sedition and was imprisoned till 1957. He left for Karachi after his release and died a pauper in 1970. The Nizam was not charged but was given a ceremonial post till his date.

This movie created a lot of controversies before its release. The filmmakers were accused of distorting history. The atrocities were magnified, and some of the violence committed by the upper-class Hindus, moneylenders, landowners and communists was assumed to have been done by Razakars. There were half-truths and blatant lies. The Nizam is said to have aided Hindu concerns and temples. It seemed that the Communists did fight against the Razakars, but they were not credited in the movie. Some intellectuals label it as Hindutva propaganda. The Hanging Tree incident is a fight against the British but somehow lumped here as the Nizam's doing. It turned out to be a gore fest with little cinematic value or compelling storytelling.

(P.S. Qasim Razvi's party remains a legitimate political party. From Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen MIM, it is now known as All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, AIMIM. It is a formidable opposition party that regularly churns out Islam and Muslim-related issues. After Rizvi, the party's helm was passed to Abdul Wahid Owaisi, the current leader's grandfather.)

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A veiled glance?

Laapataa Ladies (Missing Ladies; Hindi; 2024)

Director: Kiran Rao

At first glance, I thought it would be an Indian culture-bashing offering—one that ridicules some out-of-date traditional practices and tries to showcase how ridiculous India really is. Perhaps it would also include a couple of corrupt policemen on the side to drive home the point. I was wrong. It turned out to be a simple story about women empowerment, told in a simple manner and mainly using new faces, minus the glitz and razzmatazz typically associated with Bollywood.

It starts with two newly wedded couples travelling in the same train compartment. As per practice in the conservative societies of the Hindi heartland, brides are expected to wear full veils to show chastity. The funny thing is that both brides donned the same saree colour and had about the same body constitution. Hence, in the dead of the night, in the confusion of almost missing the train station, Deepak alights the train sleepily with the wrong bride, Jaya. Deepak's wife, Phool, gets down a few stations later with the other groom.

Both couples soon realise they have the wrong girl. Phool refuses to leave the railway station till her husband comes looking for her. The long arm of the law takes a long time to rectify the confusion. The interim period shows us that Jaya really has something up her sleeves or, rather, under her ghunghat (veil). Phool undergoes a baptism of fire to realise she is more than a helping hand to her new family and that she can stand on her own feet.

After much confusion caused by Phool's ignorance and Jaya's conniving ways, Phool and Deepak reunite. Jaya's dream comes true. Happy ending.

The practice of brides and married women wearing a ghunghat (traditional veil) tickled my mind. Many societies view it as a portrayal of chastity. In reality, it is nothing like that. 

In ancient India, during the times of Muslim invaders, the Muslim victors would often go on a victory lap, rewarding themselves. As per their religious scriptures, the Muslim soldiers are entitled to keep the captured women as sex slaves. Imagine Hindu women running away from their invaders, chasing them on horseback. Wearing a veil must be a sure way to hide their Hinduness, hence escape captivity. I think, over time, the veil became a saving grace and soon got imbibed as a daily wear. Soon, it was imposed on women to safeguard themselves and be viewed as a sign of purity. Temple-going ladies, too, follow this practice to show reverence. To prove my point, we do not see this, i.e. ladies scarfing their heads in temples, in lands not conquered by Muslims like Tamil Nadu. Food for thought.

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Control is key!

La Luna (2023)

Director: M. Raihan Halim

It is not just confined to one religion; it so happens that Islam is the reference in this film. Leaders of any religion, way of life, or cult take it upon themselves to be the de facto spokesperson on how the religion should be practised. They want to have the final say as if they had an audience with the Almighty, who whispered the secrets of life in their ears. 

To the young and restless, they give the impression that their lifelong purpose in life is to screw up everybody's happiness. Just to show who is the boss. 

Take this example. Occasionally, at the temple I sometimes frequent, there will be public service announcements of some good news or achievements. Naturally, the congregation would display their pleasure and admiration by clapping. That was the most natural thing for us humans to do. "But no!" said one elder, who raised his hands angrily to stop them from clapping. Strangely, a few minutes later, everyone was seen ecstatic, clapping and chanting to chants of 'Hare Rama Hare Krishna'. Nobody seems to know that there is such a rule and the rationale for having one when I ask around. After all, how does clapping in felicitations differ from the one during the recital of hymns? Finally, a very senior attendee just said that it was traditional. Period.

The lesson from this example is that people put rules and regulations in place because they can and want to. It is all about control and showing who is the boss.

This film got many of the religious people hot under the garbs. This comedy questions our blind faith and how leaders use it for selfish needs.

Kampong Bras Basah is a closely knitted village overseen by the conservative local holy man. He determines what is preached in the Friday prayers and micromanages peoples' affairs. Troubles come knocking when a plucky young lady starts her lingerie business in the village. Even though initially the villagers looked at the shop with scorn, they eventually flocked to the shop when one of the couples in the village showed remarkable improvement in their intimate relationships. The holy man digs up his sleeves to shut down the business. The storyline includes hints of spousal abuse, women empowerment, and the need to stand your ground and not blindly follow rules. 4/5.

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When they were kings!

Jalal Uddin al-Afghani (1839-97)

Imagine you are living in the late 19th century, and you have been brought up in an Orthodox Islamic environment. How would you, through an ultra-Islamic lens, look at the world around you?

You have read and been told that within the century after its introduction, the influence of Islam was seen in all four corners of the world. India was run over by a series of opulent dynasties upon dynasties of flamboyant Islamic rulers. In the 18th century, India was the wealthiest nation in the world. Islamic traders had introduced the religion to the shores where they traded.

After defeating the Crusaders, the Islamic rulers steadfastly asserted Allah's law on Earth. At its pinnacle, the Ottoman Empire controlled most of southeastern Europe to the gates of Vienna, the Balkans, Ukraine, parts of the Middle East and North Africa. 

Al-Afghani saw the time that passed as the most glorious days of Islam. Right in front of his eyes, he saw the reign of leaders who use Islam as their selling point slowly crumbling. The British were making inroads into dismantling the wealthiest Muslim Empire. The Ottomans were getting sicker by the day with ineffective leaders and widespread unholy practices. The schisms within the fold also made it easier for its enemies to hoodwink them, using their weaknesses to their benefit. 

Just who is this Al-Afghani? How is he of relevance today? 

Jalal al-Din al-Afghani was an elusive character and a wanderer who was either embraced or shooed by the countries in which he sojourned at different times of his life. Probably born to a Shiite family in Persia, Afghanis insist he was born in Afghanistan. At 18, he was in India and performed his Haj soon afterwards. He became a scholar of religion and would be called upon to impart his knowledge. He went to Iran, Turkey, Egypt and the United Kingdom. His idea of modernisation without Westernisation was popular among the masses but not with elites and clerics. He promoted being meagre, which did not excite the leaders. He suggested a pan-Islamic movement and is said to be the first Modern Muslim who used the shield of Islam in his political appeal.

He had his hand in France, Russia, and India and left a long trail of people who were angry with him. At one time, he was even inducted into Freemasonry. Flitting between his Shiite background and Sunni knowledge, he still failed to unite both denominations. At one time, he gave a scathing opposition to Darwin's 'Theory of Evolution' but later rescinded that animals do evolve but can never be human.

He died of mandibular cancer in 1897 but remains a prominent figure amongst Muslim scholars who like to see the so-called golden era of Islam make a comeback here on Earth. Unity within
the ummah, he never achieved, but at least when it comes to threats to their own kind, they flock together. Like a swarm of bees, seemingly buzzing around haphazardly, perhaps appearing to bump into each other, they fall into formation to protect their hive.

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Power, a double-edged sword that cuts own hand!

Cairo Conspiracy (aka Boy from Heaven; 2022)
Director: Tarik Saleh

What started as a guide for mankind to live in symbiosis with Nature and his fellow beings has come to this. Religion used to be a solace for the broken-hearted and for broken dreams. It is unbelievable how some doe-eyed ignorant (read stupid) voters in some Eastern States of the Malaysian Peninsula are hoodwinked into believing that a vote for the Islamic party is a ticket to secure a place in Jannah in the afterworld. Can you get any stupider than that? Not to forget the self-centred foot soldiers who want to re-instate the past glory of the Levant kingdom without a thought for the innocent collateral damage just because they want to spend eternity with virgins (or grapes in the new revised version of the scriptures!). The only problem is that, in a body-less afterlife, they would not have a body for bodily pleasures.

Recently, the cabal of non-god-believing leftists took it upon themselves to destroy the career of an 87-year-old Tibetan godman with his 80 years record of unblemished career by ridiculously editing his innocent grandfatherly encounter with a worshipper to give it a pedophilic overtone. 

Religion has turned into a political tool, a money-churning machine, a puppet string to control the masses (with a silent 'm') besides fulfilling its traditional role of being the opiate of choice to the public. It herds its followers to think collectively without taxing the grey cells or changing the status quo. Thinking outside the box is not encouraged. Decision-making is best left to the elitists, the clerics, as they know what is best for mankind. They are the moral guardians, which they enforce with iron fists and supposed zero-tolerance.

Unlike Plato's Republic, modern democracies are not ruled by philosophers. Following the shenanigans of the Church in Europe, there became a distinct separation between governments and the Church (or other religions in other countries). Following Khomeni's establishment of a true Islamic Republic in Iran, increasingly, many clerics have been slowly exerting their influence. Invoking the name of God seems to cow all believers into submission. In most countries, clerics and politicians become strange bedfellows; one leeching on the other for power. The dynamics between these two unholy unions are anything but sincere. There is constant Hawkeye surveillance on the other and an ongoing ploy to reign in the other's control of resources.

The Egyptian-Swedish filmmaker, Tarik Saleh, had no plans to make this movie as the storyline seems to undermine an institution considered most prestigious amongst the Sunni sect, Cairo's al-Azhar University. His previous film, 'Nile Hilton Incident' (2017), got him in trouble with the Egyptian authorities for painting the Egyptian police as corrupt. And Saleh was not welcomed in Egypt. So, most of the shooting had to be done in Turkey and Sweden instead.

Adam, a son of a fisherman from a small town, is chosen to study at al-Azhar University. His freshman year saw the sudden death of the Great Imam. He soon finds himself a pawn in the skullduggery of the appointment of the new Imam. He has to assume the role of the Secret Service to discover the clandestine activities of opposing factions in trying to win the coveted position over.

He finally realises that power is a double-edged sword that can cut one's own hand.

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Is love jihad even a thing?

The Kerala Story (Hindi, 2023)

Written & Directed by Sudipto Sen

 This movie is kicking a storm in India right now. It is outrightly banned in West Bengal by the ruling party. In Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the courts have allowed screening for the time being, but the case is due to be reviewed in the Supreme Court soon. 

Some cinema hall operators have voluntarily decided not to screen the film for fear of reprisal from angry mobs. They cite not wanting to offend Muslim sentiments and the possibility of property damage. This only shows the schizophrenic nature of society. On the one hand, people talk about freedom of expression; simultaneously, there is a need to control the narrative.

The controversy stems from the story's theme - love jihad and forced conversion. A Malayalee Hindu nursing student tells her life story. A bubbly student dabbles with Islam and is lured into marrying a Muslim man after inadvertently getting pregnant. She is brainwashed to hate her roots and family, is forcibly converted, given a new identity and packed off to ISIS-controlled areas to be a sex slave. The film suggests a concerted plan by Muslim groups to identify pretty Christian and Hindu girls and lure them into Islam. The protagonist lives to tell her ordeal after she escapes one of these ISIS hell holes. 

So what is the controversy all about?

Muslims have repeatedly asserted that jihad in Islam refers to the internal striving to improve oneself and fight inner demons, not a crusade to convert the world or assert dominance over others. They insist that ISIS' brand of Islam does not follow the teachings of the mainstream Islamic schools of thought. It represents a warped understanding of the religion. Unfortunately, practising Muslims are wary of outrightly condemning their antics to protect the sanctity of Islam. They feel it is not their position to judge and condemn for fear of being labelled a heretic. The punishment for apostasy is quite unnerving. This gives the religion a bad reputation among non-believers and widens the fissure between the ummah and kaffirs. 

Does love jihad exist? Is there a concerted effort to proselytise non-Muslims? In certain tribal societies in Central Asia, a man proves his virility by kidnapping his bride. This practice was prevalent with Turks about the time of the inception of the Ottoman Empire. The Turks found the blonde, blue-eyed Caucasian girls easy targets. Within a few generations, the Turks, once with Mongoloid features, became indistinguishable from Europeans. This practice worked perfectly well for the Empire to spread its influence and faith, as the conversion was assumed to be a one-way ticket. One can check out anytime but can never leave. 

Reports of girls leaving the comfort of their cushy lives to don purdahs and carry rifles heading for ISIS suicide missions in the name of love of religion (and beau) are not unheard of. The story of Shamima Begum and her application to reinstate her British citizenship comes to mind. 

This love jihad business is often portrayed as an RSS and BJP's political propaganda and an Islamophobic Trobe to polarise society for political gains. Interestingly, this phenomenon was first highlighted by a Bishop in Kerala way back in 2009. The presiding High Court judge in a forced conversion case that ensued later agreed that there was a well-known movement known as Love Jihad or Romeo Jihad. The official figures for this are elusive, but one finding put 1,400 from diverse ethnic backgrounds in India as victims.

In many so-called 'right-wing' YouTube channels, there is much coverage of Hindu groups supposedly rescuing Hindu and Christian girls from such ordeals. 

Even though accusations of sexual grooming of societies have been making their rounds for some time now, it is only of late that people in power have woken up to the idea that many communities in the U.K. and Sweden, particularly of Pakistani descent, have been slowly building a web of emotional and hierarchical connections with their young to intentionally manipulate, exploit and abuse them. Investigations into this gained momentum after the 2010 Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal in the U.K. The Prime Minister of the U.K. even admitted threats imposed by such groups and is under their scrutiny.

Finally, all the parties that hurl accusations and counter-accusations at each other have only one agenda. It is a numbers game. The endpoint is usurping power and control. Using victim card to garner sympathy and invoking God's name in their actions, the ultimate aim is to win elections. It is not about doing the right thing or being fair. The end justifies the means.

Meanwhile, the film's financiers are laughing all the way to the bank as the film smashes the box office and grosses unprecedented returns on investment. So far, in such a short duration since its release, it is said to be the fifth highest-grossing Hindi film of 2023.  

(P.S. The events portrayed in the film were reportedly inspired by the accounts of four women from Kerala who converted to Islam and travelled with their husbands to Afghanistan to join ISIS between 2016 and 2018. They were interviewed by a news website in 2019. They were part of a 21-member group from Kerala to join ISIS in 2016 and have remained incarcerated in Afghanistan since surrendering in 2019. The figure of 32,000 victims of love jihad mentioned in their trailer (later withdrawn) may have been exaggerated.)

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Love thy neighbour, they say!

Fauda (Chaos, Hebrew/Arab; 2015-2019)
(Miniseries S1-3)

Is it not ironic that the Western nations want to police the whole world but failed miserably at finding peace at the heart of the Judeo-Christian stronghold. It seems that the brothers of the Book perform poorly when it comes to showing brotherly love. Also funny that a place that four great religions of the world look up to as their holy land cannot be protected by their Protector. A land hardly larger than 30,000 square kilometres, but this piece of land had not seen peace since time immemorial. 

The feud has lasted so long that nobody can remember who drew first blood. Both parties, the Palestinians and the Israelis, claim legitimate historical rights on that piece of land. Looks like all that talk of the religion of peace, the religion of love and the religion of compassion is mere rhetoric. The reference to 'brotherhood' is only offered to the brethren of the same faith, not of the whole of mankind.

I am sure God must be in a quandary. It is like the old Indian saying or maybe an old movie dialogue. It is akin to asking a mother which child she wants to support; she would say, "you are asking me whether I love my right eye more than the left eye. I love them both." Probably that is why there are no permanent solutions here. Let both brothers fight it out till both exhausts each other. The trouble is that their course has sympathisers from people elsewhere. Everybody else is drawn into the bottomless wormhole. 

This miniseries shows, from an Israeli viewpoint, is about a group from an Israeli counter-terrorism unit in the Israeli Defence Force. They are often referred to as Mista'arvim, meaning living amongst Arabs. They speak Arabic and assimilate into the local population to collect intelligence on the latest Palestinian terrorist activities. In the series, we find a power struggle between the Palestinian Authority (PA), Hamas and the newbie around town, ISIS. It looks like PA wants to maintain law and order, but everyone else has their idea of which brand of Islam should prevail on their land. They want more possession of land, which they assert was theirs anyway, to start with. To die for such a course is divine; they have been indoctrinated and have the rest of Palestine (and the world) follow suit.

This is, of course, the Israeli perspective of things. The Palestinians should rebut with their own version of the ground situation, but then, there will be confusion on which version is acceptable. Each faction of society would insist theirs is correct and proclaim their claim is a pursuit worth dying for.

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