Of feudal tyranny!

Nishant (Night's End, Hindi, 1975)
Director: Shyam Benegal

Cultural practices and people's thinking evolve as society progresses. Everybody likes to think that it is progress. If, a generation ago, hugging and cuddling between family members was not the norm, now, touch is considered a prerequisite for healthy psychological growth, especially for the young. What seems perfect today may, in time to come, turn unspeakable.

Long ago, the group of people known as the Paraiyars held a certain status in society. They were reputable for making good drums, which were an essential item then. Drums were important tools in religious ceremonies and battlegrounds, and they were an excellent mode of communication in battles. Coded drumming conveyed specific codes. At one point, the Paraiyars even broke from their armies and formed their own empire.

Over time, the belief system of the land underwent its own renaissance of sorts. Breakaways from Hinduism viewed meat eating and working on carcasses as something demeaning. Elitists of the Hindus decided that they would instead revere cows and omit meat altogether from their diet. The Paraiyars soon found themselves treated as outcasts, clinging on to the lowest rung of the food chain.

When the British colonial masters came over to India to aid their project of squandering wealth from the exotic, they had to analyse the societal strata. It aided in their policy to 'divide and rule'. For that, they used a system akin to the one used in Europe, subdividing people by profession. For example, a Baker bakes, a Thatcher repairs roofs, a Fletcher is an arrowsmith, and a Schumaker makes shoes. In their census, the British classified their subject by profession.

Smitha Patil, Shyam Benegal, Shabana Azmi

@ Cannes Film Festival 1976.

Before the Europeans reared their ugly heads to the subcontinent, the Indians had their own internal economic equilibrium. This, however, was put in disarray when mercantilism and imperialism changed how business was done. This modern trade system placed a strain on the social layout. The divide between the haves and have-nots increased. People did what they could to prosper, like dancing to the tune of the leaders of the day. This created a ruling class and a subserviently helpless working class.

This is what happened in 1945 in India, as depicted in this movie. The landowner class used their bargaining power to cow the helpless farmers. They not only cheated by them blind with arbitrary rules but also got away with bullying and other activities. Nishant is one such movie. It is a product of the parallel cinema in India. Made by master filmmaker Shyam Benegal, it was acted beautifully by doyens Smitha Patil and Shabana Azmi. Amrish Puri plays the villain. It was a powerful narration of social oppression, feudal tyranny, and social injustice complemented by subtle but intense characterisation by the actors who took this film to Cannes in 1976. It showcased Benegal's creativity as a filmmaker who dared to tell stories that mattered to the world, leaving an everlasting impact on Indian and world cinema.

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Normalising woke culture?

Kadhalikka Neramillai (No time to love,  காதலிக்க நேரமில்லை;  Tamil, 2025)

Director: Kiruthiga Udhayanidhi

https://www.moneycontrol.com/entertainment/kadhalikka-neramillai-ott-release-
when-and-where-to-watch-this-romantic-drama-starring-jayam-ravi-a
nd-nithiya-menon-article-12936421.html

It would have been just another Netflix recommendation that I would have ignored. Having such an unoriginal name, which had been used before, did not excite me. For the ignoramus, in 1964, the Tamil cinema was taken back by Sridhar's superhit. Its psychedelic, picturesque Eastman moment came to be defined as Tamil cinema's first rom-com. The hit song. 'Visvanathan, velai vendum!' became to be sung as the voice of defiance of the oppressed.

My interest was piqued when a YouTuber of a channel I follow went into a tirade trying to tear down Netflix and its moviemakers for thinking out of such a crass movie. Other Tamil movie reviewers were kind to the movie, praising it for its modern approach to storytelling and refreshing filmmaking. They probably did not want to offend the First Family of Tamil Nadu, as the ruling CM's family is involved in the film's direction, production and distribution. My YouTuber accused Netflix and the producers of trying to tear down every fibre of decency and threaten to destroy the Indian way of life. The prescribed Indian or Tamil way of living, where a female is supposed to follow specific rules regarding sex, weddings and patriarchal lead, is torn down.

The movie starts with a rebellious daughter, Shriya, working as an architect in Chennai, asking her mother how sure she was that her unmarried daughter was still a virgin. The mother almost faints whilst the father ducks down, avoiding the confrontation that ensued. 

To put things in order, it is a story about a daughter who plans to migrate to the US after a civil marriage with her 4-year-old boyfriend and obtains her visa. One day, after returning from work earlier than usual, she finds her husband in bed with her best friend. She annuls her wedding.

The 1964 version

In another town, Bangalore, another architect, Sid, is all set to engage his model girlfriend. After a minor misunderstanding, the fiancée decides not to turn up. As is often the case, he goes on bedding beaux one after another for revenge. 

Meanwhile, Shriya realises that her biological clock is ticking away and wants a baby as soon as possible. What does she do? She goes straight for donor insemination. And guess whose sperm she receives? Don't ask how, but she receives Sid's from another state. Sid had once accompanied his gay friend to donate his sperm for future use. Sid does the same. This gay friend reappears later to marry his partner. This became a point of contention for the commentator as if the film is normalising gay weddings in India. For the record, while the third gender is recognised in Indian law, gay weddings are not. 

The purists also have issues with the casual portrayal of alcohol consumption by both sexes and across all layers of society. The familial decorum, such as the parent-child barrier often observed in traditional Indian families, seems to have disappeared. Single parenting is depicted as the most natural thing. It is trying to shove in the Woke's gender agenda. 

Most Indian movies end with all the characters agreeing that the Indian way of life is supreme as if to resolve all the issues. No, not here. The protagonist decides to live with the sperm donor as her live-in partner. 

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Beyond strengthening ties?

Under the guise of surveillance, imperial powers went to all four corners of the world. Their true intentions, as was eventually discovered by the locals, were reconnaissance work to ascertain terrains and landscapes for economic potentials and geopolitical purposes, not for the development of mankind. Neither was it to garner scientific facts to explore our civilisation. It was business. The icing on the cake was exploring how natives could eventually be 'civilised' via Western education and the introduction of The Book.

From the 18th century onwards, the Western world was excited, discovering new exotic lands with wealth beyond belief. Pretty soon, no combative teams started scouting new lands in Africa, India, China and various other parts of Asia. Under the guise of doing land surveying, whites were seen around Afghanistan, Siberia, the Middle East and the Far East. When geopolitical turmoils embroiled in these regions, the armies of the imperial forces suddenly found their knowledge of the area useful to usurp lands. Their understanding of the region's economic potential was also instrumental in concentrating their meddling efforts. Think Lawrence of Arabia, the Britishers' strange relationship with the Saud family and finds of petroleum. Think of Alexender Burnes and the subsequent Kabul Expedition.

Hence, there grew a faction of Caucasians who knew more about the Orientals, the Indians or the Aztecs than the natives themselves. They essentially taught the natives who they were and what their ancestors thought and lived. They rewrote their histories to suit the day's narrative, with the imperialists appearing as saviours.

Students at Beijing Foreign Studies University
©tamilculture.com

So naturally, when Tamil-speaking Chinese appeared on the vernacular radio, specifically on the RTM Minnal network, to be interviewed, many Tamil-speaking Malaysian Indians were on cloud nine, proud of their mother tongue, happy seeing it going places. I remained sceptical.

In July 2023, Kuala Lumpur hosted the 11th International Tamil Conference. Tamil scholars from all over the world gathered to sing praises of one of the oldest surviving languages in the world. Delegates immerse themselves in the language's beauty, richness, glitter and exquisiteness. The Tamil language does not stand alone as a mode of communication. Tamil history, ethics, devotion, literature, and recipes for a meaningful life are intertwined with the language.

For many years, TikTok and YouTube have showcased many snippets of Chinese people conversing proficiently in accented Tamil. They show many of their colleagues indulging in Tamil foods, mouthing traditional Tamil poems and recitals, all dressed in traditional Indian costumes. Beijing University even provides space for learning Tamil and other Indian languages at the undergraduate level.  

Is it for the love of the culture, or are they pursuing a tongue-rolling challenge when the Chinese students signed up for these courses? Is there another sinister master plan by the powers that be?

With the regular redrawing of its borders and standing tall, not answerable to international courts, their intentions may be anything but altruistic. History has proven that even gifts-bearing well wishes who turn up at one's land have no noble intentions. Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Zambia can bear witness to all the business wranglings and hand sleigh movements that got them into a mess.

Take the example of the Spratly Islands in the middle of the South China Sea. Even though for years, that spread of uninhabitable islands was disputed amongst Vietnam, the Philipines, and Malaysia, one starry night, China decided that they wanted to occupy it. And that is how it has been since. China just kept building mammoth structures in the no man's land at its disputed border with India till one day, it was found to have brought its warriors there.

There is no smoke without fire if lessons from past events were anything to go by. The keenness to acquire knowledge in other people's languages and cultures may belie underlying private intentions. It may not be just a foreign diplomacy. Everybody likes to think they have a genuine interest in learning each others' culture and language so that all can hold hands and sing Kumbayah. Maybe that is the truth. On the one hand, we demand that others respect our language, culture, and way of life. In the same breath, we become suspicious when they do. 

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Tied me down?

In this day and age, would feminists find Rakshabandhan relevant anymore? Increasingly, we see ladies becoming the alpha and highly testosterone-charged beings. If domestic abuse victims were assumed to be fairer sex, think again.

Imagine telling a modern 21st-century lady that she needs a male guardian to protect her from the vulgarises of society. Someone with a cape to rise to the occasion to shield her to save her life and chastity. It may have been relevant when society comprised males with unabated raging hormones on steroids. With civilisation, these toxic behaviours had been identified and put a lid on.

Women empowerment efforts, education and job opportunities have sprung open for them to clinch their list positions in society. The male community members have been conditioned to respect women, tolerating smug and passive-aggressive manipulations. Many men have suffered in silence in the name of peace of mind and wanting to maintain sanity.

Don’t get me wrong. The world is still not a safe space. There are plenty of discriminations and injustices happening under our very noses.

Rakshabandhan allows feuding siblings to mend their fences. Sure, the ceremony with all bright colours and public display of sibling affection is Instagram-worthy. Siblings, being siblings, are sure to get entwined in occasion skirmishes. The ceremony, done out of compulsion or otherwise, gives time to reflect the strong co-dependent bond knotted by the Universe and cemented covalently by DNA. These bonds are man-made and decided by the Universe and happen randomly at a cosmic level. It is also an opportune time to hook up and boost old relationships.

On a lighter note, it may also give an avenue, a secret weapon for young girls to tell off their stalkers, “Buzz off!” Hold them down, tie the Rakshabandhan brotherly wristband, Rakhi, and douse down any burning desire for possible romantic liaisons!

The flavour of the times.
Bhumi Matta (Mother Earth) trying rakhi to Chanda Mama (Uncle Moon)

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Beyond doing the right things!

I'll meet you there (2021)
Story, Direction: Iram Parveen Bilal

The movie's title has its origin from one of Rumi's sayings. Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. 

It sounds about right. It is easy for a third person to look at our every action and pass judgement, just as easy for us to judge others. There must be a justification for everyone's actions. He must have given a lot of thought before embarking on its execution. If the measures are just by their intentions, pure at heart and are sure to accept the consequences, who are we to pass comments?

This movie created a buzz on my antenna when it was reported to be banned in Pakistan. Its Central Board of Film Censors (CBFC) found the film unsuitable for public exhibition as it did not reflect true Pakistani culture, portrayed a negative image of Muslims, and was against Pakistan's social and cultural values.

All the film did was depict brown people and Muslims in a non-stereotypical fashion, often not shown in Hollywood and Tinseltown. It narrates the tale of an American-Pakistani police officer, Majeed, in Chicago. He has a heavy cloud hanging over him. His wife, a Kathak dancer, had to give up her passion (and her life) due to pressures from her father in law. Now he leads a quiet life with his daughter, Dua, a college-going student. Like her mother, she is passionate about dancing, especially Kathak, a traditional Indian dance. Dua is nicely snuggled into the American way of carefree life until her grandfather, i.e. Majeed's father, arrives unannounced at their doorstep after 12 long years. 

That is when Dua and Majeed's lives hit stormy waters.

Dua's unrestricted American lifestyle is scorned upon. Her involvement in an unIslamic artform is criticised, and Dua is pushed to stick to tenets of the religion. Meanwhile, Majeed is compelled to investigate the local mosque for possible funding of terrorist activities. During an FBI raid in that Majeed acted as an informant, his father was apprehended.

In essence, the movie deals with how members of three generations keep religion in their daily lives. With the challenge of exposure to newer communities and the demand of different environments, the newer generation amalgamates religion into their lives as and how they feel appropriate. Pressures from the elders and to need to conform to society put them in a difficult place.

An entertaining watch.

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Nothing is sacrosanct!

Gehraiyaan (Depths, Hindi; 2022)

Director: Shakun Batra

The democratisation of movie-making has led to this - an Indian fairy tale movie made in the vein of a soft porn Western movie just to lure in India's Anglophile liberal English movie-going viewers. The only thing remotely linked to Indianness is the spoken language; otherwise, it is just like any garbage churned out of the factories in Hollywood, sex, lies, murder, and obnoxious flaunting of wealth. 

The following are the few lessons I leant from this movie:

• It is perfectly alright to have sex with your best friend's boyfriend without having a second thought or an iota of guilt;
• It appears to me that wealth is the justification for everything. After all, living life is for the experience. Doing the morally right thing does not fall anywhere near the equation;
• Two-timing is perfectly within your rights;
• Consuming alcohol is your birthright; indulge even when you are pregnant;
• DIY abortion is a no brainer; perform it in your bathroom; 
• Murder your lover and keep mum about it; you can get away from it!
• Be opinionated about everything and do not forget to blame all your follies on your parents. After all, they know nothing;
• Scold your live-in boyfriend for everything. He is your punching bag. You can scold, abuse or even an occasional whack; he would not retaliate because it is not cool for a dude to lay his finger on his beau. His toxicity just would not be justifiable.
• A live-in relationship is a perfectly acceptable living arrangement for an Indian couple, approved by their old folks.
• Treat your family like trash but do not forget your civil duties. Taking out the garbage is the most socially conscious duty one needs to perform.

Soon spaghetti tops and hot pants would be the national
 costume of the Indian diaspora, much like is what is
viewed as progressive in most metropolitan cities.

A struggling yoga instructor, Alisha, has just had it with life. Her procrastinating boyfriend, Karan, is dragging with his book venture, and the app that she is developing has not found investors. At that juncture, he hooks up with her childhood friend, Tia, and her obscenely wealthy fiance, Zain. Alisha has a dark cloud hanging over her. Her mother had hung herself, and Alisha blames her father for it. Alisha finds Zain a convenient catch who would help her find happiness. Things take a turn when a glitch with money happens.

Watch it just for the hoopla surrounding it. If you are pressed for time, watch something else. Precious time is better spent elsewhere. 

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Is it an imagined war or a real one?

Hindu Society Under Siege (1981)
Sita Ram Goel

Hindu culture has a very long history. Its history goes back beyond 2500 BC. Recent astronomical calculations as referred to Valmiki's description of planetary constellations during Lord Rama's date of birth ascertained his birth as 5114 BC. Similarly, Mahabharata's account of Krishna's birth puts his date of delivery as 3228 BC. Suppose the scriptures and old temples were anything to go by, nothing stops us from assuming that Bharat indeed had a highly developed civilisation long before any Western force set foot in the land beyond the Indus Valley. 

Being the accommodating hosts and the inquisitive philosophers there were, they embraced all cultures with open arms. In the quest in search of the eternal truth, they accepted other routes towards this end. 

Over the generations, the visitors have tried to impress upon the hosts of their superiority and demean India's age-old traditions. According to the author, centuries of colonisation have left India with three groups who are out derailing the peace of the Nation, precisely, the Hindu society which boasts of having people who profess the third most popular religion in the world. 

Goel has always been a controversial figure. He had been censored after criticising history and doctrines of Islam. His reprint of his contemporary, Ram Swarup's 'Understanding Islam through Hadis' created a furore got him arrested. He was also outspoken on his criticism of Christianity as well. Pandits like David Crowley and Koenraad Elst, on the other hand, described him as an 'intellectual Kshatriya' possessing unparalleled strong rationalistic point of view that did not compromise the truth for politeness.

In this book, he zeroes on three groups that are out to destroy the harmony of the Nation. Firstly, the most malevolent of these residues is Islamism, the rubble of the Muslim invasion of India that spread over several centuries, that find difficulty in integrating with the rest of the country but takes pride in the purity of its Arab, Persian or Turkish descent. Like Ambedkar, he accused Islam of not being inclusive.

Goel was also outspoken in his criticism of Christianity. He asserted that secularism vilified Hinduism but ended up glorifying Abrahamic traditions. The evangelistic nature of the religion further slandered and ridiculed other belief systems. Free flow of Western wealth is used towards this end. In the North East region of India, the breaking forces have successfully steered them from their ancestral belief and go as far as to demand autonomy from India.

The third modus operandi of the invaders to debase their religion of the land is through what Goel referred to MacCaulayism. This term refers to Thomas Bablay MacCaulay, the Governor-General of India, who in 1830, proposed a significant revision of replacing the preexisting indigenous education system to produce a class of Indians brown of skin but English in taste and temperament. They look down at anything Indian. In their mind, the Indian civilisation is nothing but one with animistic belief, with rudimentary instructions in arithmetic, and reading and writing imparted by semi-educated teachers, mostly to the children of the upper castes. They view the Hindu social system as an oppressive one. In their mind, the Mughal Empire was the pinnacle of India's success. They look at the West for guidance for the flavour of the times. 

Goel defines the role of the residues of foreign rule in India vis-a-vis Hindu society in such manner; Islamism as malevolent, Christianism as mischievous, and Macaulayism as mild, though like a slow poison. 

Communism, in a way, is an extension of MacCaulayism and a legacy of the British rule. In the 1930s, the Government encouraged Indian freedom fighter to delve in Communists' activities. Communist activities and slogans are hostile to positive nationalism. Positive nationalism is one which draws its inspiration from its own cultural heritage and socio-political traditions. Communists, being atheists, cannot accept metaphysical explanations to the environment around them but demands a  physical one.

These four known forces, at different times, find common ground to cooperate in waging psychological warfare against their own common enemy, the Sanatana Dharma.

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The new norm?

That a look at these two Presidential debates, the first one was in 1960 between JFK and Nixon, whilst the second one happened recently in the year 2020. See the vibes surrounding the two debates. Without a shadow of a doubt, there is much professionalism and decency in the former whereas in the latter we only see crass behaviour and lack of common decency.

In our formative years, we were taught that to listen and to let another to speak are common decencies. Only the immature and ill-mannered interferes one's conversation we were told. We also trained to fight facts with facts, to argue it out like gentlemen in decorum, without being personal or hitting below the belt.

Somewhere along the way, while we were napping, a lot of things changed.

The '90s brought in the internet culture and work ethics of the likes of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Workers were expected to dress down to work. Work time needs to be flexible, they said. Jobs is famously known to walk around bare feet and is said to stretch out his naked feet on the office tables whilst discussing work matters with his contemporaries. Seniority went out of the window when open office concept came to being.

Smartphones did not make people smarter. It only built them a personalised echo chamber for them to wallow around in the sweetness of their pixelated self. The 'self-generation' that did not give two hoots about the feelings of the about the other morphed. Under the cloak of anonymity, they would swashbuckler their thoughts with the sorcery of keyboards which are not their views actually but mere parroting of the hidden hands of the cabal.

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