Bollywood on minority key

Why can8217;t it portray Muslims as ordinary citizens with ordinary concerns?

Despite the general appreciation accorded to the Khans and other well-known Muslim actors like Shabana, Farookh and Naseeruddin, there is no doubt that Bollywood has paid scant attention to the 8220;communal question8221;.

True, now Muslims stars no longer consider changing their names in order to become popular with the Indian public. Yusuf Khan became Dilip Kumar, Mahajabeen used the name Meena Kumari, Mumtaz Begum was known as Madhubala and Johnny Walker8217;s real name was Badruddin Kazi. It is also quite obvious that the Muslim community has had a meaningful association with the film industry. So why is it that Bollywood is still not quite in sync with the idea of Indian secularism? Consider the way Muslims have been traditionally projected. Muslim women have often been sketched as dancing girls. True, in the process, Bollywood has gifted India with memorable movies like Pakeezah and Umrao Jaan, but are Muslim women in this country largely confined to this culture? Similarly, elderly Muslim men are shown typically as pan chewing personalities in kurta-pyjamas with caps.

Of course, Bollywood8217;s tendency to propagate stereotypes is not limited to Muslims. One remembers the role of a Christian driver, played by Johnny Walker. Now this is hardly in keeping with the average Indian Christian in real life. Even Sikhs and Parsis haven8217;t been spared Bollywood8217;s attempts to try and get a few laughs out of them. Yes, even the Hindu Pandit has been parodied. This dhoti-clad personality, with a painted forehead, a few strands of long hair standing out markedly on the almost-shaved head, hardly represents his community.

But there still is a difference when it comes to the Muslim community; a hint of patronising, perhaps. Of late, there has been an attempt to project minority characters with a difference. In the movie Iqbal, 2005, depicting the trajectory of a Muslim boy from a village, making it into the Indian cricket team carries the subtle message that religious differences matter little in bringing together the average Indian Hindu and Muslim. Iqbal fights a number of odds and the question lingers. Why are minorities being projected as handicapped? Iqbal happens to be deaf and dumb. In Khamoshi 1996, based on a Christian family, Annie8217;s parents cannot speak and hear. In Lagaan 2001, the Dalit is shown as disabled.

Of course it is great that roles portraying minority communities on the big screen are no longer confined to that of dancing girls or drunken drivers. But we8217;re still a long way from portraying them as ordinary citizens with ordinary concerns. If the intention of film-makers is to convey the message that minorities are now second-class citizens, why doesn8217;t Bollywood say this?