Being Muslim - My Thoughts on Aamir (2008)

The Chinese have a very interesting blessing that I have been reminded of after watching a movie called 'Aamir'.

Well- it's not exactly a blessing but then it's not a curse either.... it's something that has overtones of struggle that would make someone like Iqbal proud but may also be a source of frustration for many others in this world.

It goes something like this: May You Live in 'Interesting' Times..... As is the norm with everything Chinese, much more can be read out and interpreted of those simple lines than what is written within those lines. As Iqbal was wont to say:

Khuda Tujhko Kissi Toofan Se Aashna Kar De
Ke Tere Baher Ki Maujon Mein Iztiraab Nahin Hai

What it means in simple terms is that out of Chaos is born a Man with Character, a Nation with Destiny, a Civilization with History and most importantly a Human with Humanity. This is so because a man in chaos will have everything except the support of the world; at every step of life he will be faced with nothing but battles to prove his worth and a war to fight to prove his existence - detractors will challenge his motives and enemies will meet him at every step - Of Course, there will be excitement, for what are battles without excitement but there will be less of support and more of hostility - However, the world is aware of the fact that greatness is often the result of a battle with the difficult and the impossible.

If this be true, indeed to be a Muslim in today's Islamophobic world is nothing short of being in a battle that has but one clear truth - you are bound to be alone.

Terrorism has no religion but the world has been conned to believe and firmly believe that Islam is the religion of Terrorism. Not all Muslims are terrorists but all terrorists are Muslims - thus goes a popular adage against the religion of Islam, which detractors would be surprised to learn means Peace!

What those honourable men of pure intentions forget is that Terrorism was neither invented by Islam neither has it been a policy of the state for the Islamic theologians. The IRA was arguably the first Terrorist Organization of the world and it does not include a single Muslim in it's ranks. Ben Gurion, who first took to bombarding hotels in 1948 with his extremist ultra-conservative Jews for the formation of Israel was anything but a Muslim. The LTTE that began with suicide bombing and use of women and children for terrorist acts does not belong exactly to the Islamic school of thought. Neither is the Lord's Republican Army a Muslim Army. Red Guerillas across the world owe allegiance to Marx and not Muhammed. I am not even considering the spectre of State-sponsored Terrorism but still the currency that has gained across the world is that Islam is the religion of war and Islamic Terrorism the only Terrorism in this world.

Being a Muslim at this point of time is then indeed a challenging preposition.

Of course, there are among Muslims a school of thought that has done a lot to humiliate and degrade Muslims than even it's most strindent of enemies. This is the thought of the Salafis, the Taliban, the Wahaabis and the renegades that are spawned by this school of Islam that has nothing to do with Islam.For them and those of their ilk, distinguishing them from real Muslims I would quote Iqbal as he states a verse that seems directed directly at the Taliban and their ilk:

Khud-Kushi Sheva Tumhaara, Woh Gayyuro Khhudar
Tum Akhubat Se Gureza; Woh Akhubat Pe Nissaar
Tum Ho Guftaar Sarapa; Woh Saraapa Kirdaar
Tum Taraste Ho Kali Ko, Woh Gulistaa Ba-Kinaar

How can these be called Muslims then and how can their religion then be compared to the religion of the great messenger of Peace?

Whatever, be the case, being a Muslim is today's world is not easy. It's an open invitation to being looked down upon, to be looked upon with suspicion, to be arrested without cause and to be held without conviction. I have seen similar circumstances among near and dear ones and have seen how a Nation often shames it's own citizens to the extent that they may no longer consider themselves a part of the Nation - which is a sad commentary on the Nation because a man who loves when ridiculed for his love turns into an animal who knows only fear and there is no emotion more destructive than Fear

There has been a dearth of films that have been made in India or abroad that look at Terrorism from the Muslim point of view - Not all Muslims subscribe to the path of terrorism - but this is not easily acceptable by the majority who view all Muslims as messengers of death and destruction. Hence when once sees a movie like Aamir, he is impressed with the way the Muslim Question has been raised by an all non-Muslim crew and how well life is shown from the Muslim point of view.

Terrorism is accidental to the plot of Aamir - for Aamir is more a story of an ordinary man caught in exceptional circumstances and how destiny drives him to make choices that normally no man would but how Man being Man, by the grace of that Divine Power we call God and his inspiration, finally does outmaneavour Destiny and in the process proves that Man Creates his Destiny and that Destiny is nothing but a  result of one's actions.That Man has Free Will and any Man who knows how to control his Will and keep it Free form undue influences can change the course of his destiny.

On a deeper plane, Aamir discusses the plight of the pampered Muslim community of India - their abodes, their living spaces, their conditions and their circumstances. Looking at these, one would be 'impressed' to listen that these are the communities that have been pampered by the State for the last 60 years since Independence. There is an interesting scene in the film wherein the hero is asked to look for a clue in a Muslim neighbourhood and the neighbourhood is shocking to say the least. A building as dilipidiated as if it was a relic of the atomic bomb explosions of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; and to imagine families with women and children residing there, as if in the shoadow of death and still going about their life as if that abode was nothing short of 'Paradise on Earth' - and the washroom - one can only feel what it must be like from the expressions of the lead actor - one interesting tidbit - no one knows the meaning of the word ' washroom'! - Imagine then the conditions and circumstances of the Community!

Rajeev Khandelwal as Aamir is excellent. Here is a guy making début in the big, bad world of movies and not afraid to tackle a subject that even the most seasoned of performers would shy away from - Rajeev's Aamir is natural, simple and ordinary. He is the guy you can meet on the roads tomorrow as you walk your dog down to the park, he is the guy who is most likely to occupy the seat next to yours in the bus as you travel to work or from work, he is the guy your girl-next-door is getting married to or who is being fancied by the girl-next-bench. In simple terms, he's a nobody - he's just another ordinary man whom we all meet on the street and may not even give a second look - This is the hallmark of Rajeev's performance - He is understated and confident and comes as a fresh bout of air in a system that seems suffocated for performance.

Gajraj Rao in the role of the nameless mastermind is terrifying. He plays the role with such a conviction that one can only feel his power through the terror that he inflcits on the others around him. He is soft-spoken but the hatred that burns within him is like a smouldering fire that can become a volcano at short notice. Throughout the movie, we find him through his actions, his speech and his mobile but still he chills you to the bone with a calmness and a detachment that comes from complete identification with the convictions that he carries.

Jhilmil Hazarika as a prostitute is bold, in-your-face and put forth a brilliant performance as a prostitute. She is so natural and effervescent that one tends to forget that this is just a persona and starts feeling as if this must be definitely the true vocation of the gifted actress.She is a complete natural and the manner in which she offers her on body on sale to Aamir with the compensations for the services availed makes one fell for an monemt as if she is not discussing her body and her shame but some wares in the market. A marvellous performance indeed.

I am very much impressed with the scriptwriter (Raj Kumar Gupta) who has drafted the script of the movie that I have nothing but the highest regard for him in my mind. The evocative use of words and the symbolisms is so well-matched that one starts feeling as if the script-writer himself must be a master in Islamic Theology. For e.g., the use of the word 'Qaum' rather than 'Mazhab' while referring to Muslims is possible only by understanding the actuall feelings of a Muslim mind.

Qaum is more than religion; it's very much akin to Community in literal meaning but is also close to the word Civilzation and Nation and is often used interchangably with both of them. This is where the script of the movie scores over many of the movies that delve in similar subjects.

The direction by the first-time director, Raj Kumar Gupta is fabulous. He has not only delved deep into the subject but has also been able to put across his point without lengthy sermonizing or the use of cliche to prove his point. The story steers clear of all the formulaic interventions that have become a matter of common use in films dealing with either religion and terrorism. Also, the fact that the film is so compactly directed, that one feels that after a long time, we have a taut thriller that actually is thrilliang and exciting to say the least. The director also proves his expertise in the use of minimal expressions to portray emotions and the movie is a brillaint exposition of the use of understatements to portray complex emotions.

There have been many movies on Terrorism, some of them formulaicm some of them exceptional; some have broken new grounds and some have been strictly pedestrian; among all this cluster of films this movie stands in a class of it's own for it's brilliant exposition of the circumstances and the psychological interplay with human emotions, how the feelings of 'us' and 'them' are created, deepened and reinforced and how these factors come together to create death and destruction in it's wake.

A movie for all who really wish to look at the current state of the country and do something about it. As I end this post, I am reminded of the words of Sahir from Pyaasa

Har Ek Jism Ghaayal, Har Ek Rooh Pyaasi
Nigaahon Mein Uljhan, Dilon Mein Udaasi
Ye Duniya Hai Ya Aalam-E-Bad-Hawaasi?
Ye Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaaye To Kya Hai!

A deep question - Let's ponder and answer this question!