Mera Wala Fear aur Mera Wala Anger!

Fear is a factor that cripples mind; fear is a factor that shows in eyes; fear is a factor that makes you frantic; fear is a factor that makes you mad.

Mr. Naseeruddin Shah has been under fear for whatever of his reasons but despite the fear he still enjoys his life in his rarefied home area, despite the fear he still enjoys a spick and span loo in his home and despite the fear he and his family is still safe.

Now during the cold winters of early 1990 the war cries of hatred made the milieu of valley in Kashmir vitriolic.

Some of the slogans used in the valley during that time are as follows:

“Ralive, Tsaliv ya Galive” (either convert to Islam, leave the land, or die)

“Kashir banawon Pakistan, Bataw varaie, Batneiw saan”

(We will turn Kashmir into Pakistan alongwith Kashmiri Pandit women, but without their men folk)

"Dil mein rakho Allah ka khauf; Hath mein rakho Kalashnikov"

(With fear of Allah ruling your hearts, wield a Kalashnikov)

“Yahan kya chalega, Nizam-e- Mustafa”

(We want to be ruled under Shari’ah)

And you know what such slogans did? They instilled fear in the hearts of mothers to such an extent that they were ready to kill their daughters before killing self; the families were ready to vacate their ancestral homes and take refuge in camps where there were no proper sanitation facilities available. (If anyone who has ever had the opportunity to defecate in open can understand the shame that it imbues in you and especially in those who had used toilets in their houses before.)

People are still bound to be stuffed in a small space with at least their three generations whereas they were owners of spacious accommodations just two and half decade ago. 

I mean this is called fear.

Then he said that he was not afraid but he was angry because of the general situation in the country that is happening on the name of religion. 

I mean just for once think about the anger of those whose land were dismembered in the name of religion. Think about anger of those, whose Hinglaj Bhawani is restricted to only books of Durga Chalisa…in general condition they can never go to Hinglaj temple in this birth. Think about anger of those whose sacred places were destroyed in the name of showing one-upmanship on the face of earth and they are reduced to a situation that in their own land they are running from pillar to post to build a temple for their revered God.

I mean come on… this was not expected from Mr. Naseeruddin Shah whom the nation never considered as only a Muslim when it watched him perform in Sparsh,Mirch Masala,Wednesday,Masoom or Paar for that matter. Since he was associated with sensible cinema, some sensible reactions from him was expected not the mera wala fear or mera wala anger.

When anyone of a stature, that Mr. Naseeruddin Shah enjoys, makes a comment on the situation of the country the constraint should be exercised. Because when anything undesirable happens due to the comments, it is the common men who suffer and need succor from each other in distressful situations. The celebrities remain in their secured citadels. And when some prominent personality of the society makes such statements, it is perceived that the milieu must be really bad otherwise why someone of his stature would be talking about it on the T.V.

We have a driver working in our company. One day he told that he needs some holidays to build his house. I was a bit startled to know that a driver was making his house whereas a private naukri –wala- admi spends his whole life in rented accommodations. When I enquired further on how he marshaled financial resources to make a home he told that he was granted Rs. 2,20,000 from some govt. scheme that doles out money to build houses to people belonging to poor class. I was startled to know that the govt. scheme didn’t differentiate in a Hindu and Muslim and even if our Driver is a Muslim, he got the benefit of the scheme on the yardsticks of being the countryman. Later, the driver told that his family members were immensely benefited from some Mobile Health Vehicles (again run by Govt.) that go to small villages and help complete whatever of tests required for a patient or could be done for a patient in a mobile health vehicle.

I think that these positive things that happen on ground level should be the epicenter of talks while talking about the image of the country.

On the ground level the Hindu and Muslim community needs each other more frequently than those who live in their own secured world.

In 2016 there was some communal tension in my city but not of the flagrant nature but while we were at our office, words spread that shops were being closed down and general transportation was stopped. We were advised to leave the office as soon as possible. I had my driver (who also happens to be a Muslim) not of company, with me that day, and seeing the desolate roads he got panicked. I assured him that first I would drop him in his house only then I would go to mine. We moved towards his house but I was also anxious of anything untoward that could have happened. I left him at his home and then I drove as fast as possible to my house. 

Anyways, the roads were totally empty that day, so that also added to my speed. But during that period I had experienced immense fear I mean when there is a riot no one recognizes anyone. I just want to say that even if I am not a superman, I decided that first I would drop my driver at his house and then I would go to mine. I didn't see that my driver was a Muslim, he was my driver only and a human being whose family was waiting for him. And the same way my driver is ready for me whenever there is any emergency situation in my life. I mean though we are Hindu and Muslim yet seldom have we had any fear of each other. 

Under our company another entity works as our sub-contractor and the proprietor of that company is Muslim. But workers working under him are Hindus also and he is ever ready to help them out whenever there is an emergency situation in the lives of his Hindu workers. And mind you the help that he provides in shape of money is other than that he is legally bound to pay like: Salary, ESI, and PF.

With the two examples, I just want to show that the two communities, generally, are not baying for blood of each other on day to day basis and what is shown on TV might sometimes be aloof from what the reality might be.And since the reach of T.V is maximum, use of it should also have some responsibility. And the more positive we talk; the more the negatives will wilt, on their own.

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