Intolerance these days is a virtue frequented by those who are not completely convinced of their own beliefs. Either this or they seem to have all the time in the world to do nothing. Else how can you explain their propensity to agitate whenever someone even remotely seems to infringe on their beliefs. Hold on ! What did I just write. Oh shit ! I forgot to write the disclaimer and before any of your blood pressures start shooting up, I earnestly pledge to everyone out there that my words were not targeted at any religion, language, caste, color, creed, gender and what not. So please forgive me and don't descend at my doorsteps or my uncle's or my cousin's husband's sister's and disturb our peace of mind. Many might think that I am taking myself way seriously. Yes its true that I am an insignificant nothing in the public landscape. But there are many more such 'not so significant' people out there who want to become significant by targeting even a nothing like me (Let me throw some hints to prove my point in case. Sena - Hooliganism - Two girls - Social Network). So imagine the joy of such people when someone like Kamal Haasan - the unparalleled legend in the world of cinema - makes a movie on a very sensitive subject. Viola ! Its party time folks !
As a Kamal fan it was an established fact that I would be watching Vishwaroopam come what may. But with all the controversy surrounding the movie, I wanted to watch it at the earliest before the Tamil Nadu government chewed out some part of the movie. What I and almost everyone who watched the movie felt was that the movie depicted world events in their true self. The movie talks about the terrorists who operate out of Afghanistan and hence they turn out to be Muslims. There is isn't the slightest hint of any provocation and added to it Kamal is smart enough not to jeopardize his 95 crores investment by stoking any religious tensions. But like there is no absolute space and time, there is no absolute perspective too. So it is understandable that some Muslims felt hurt by the movie. In that case they could have simply abstained from seeing the movie. Or they could have requested Kamal to put a disclaimer saying 'All Muslims are not terrorists' (as demanded by some Muslim leaders in Karnataka), though I find it unnecessary mentioning Muslims in the same vein as terrorists. But demanding to ban a movie that has been certified by the Censor Board is an unlawful act and attacks the strongest pillar of a democratic society - Right to Expression ! So such acts should be strongly condemned and dealt with by the government. Time and again the the cocktail of religion and movies has gone terribly sour and surely Vishwaroopam will not be the last one too.
In India, not just religion but every component of the social fabric seems to cause trouble. Over the past decade there has been heavy migration between states which is a natural follow through of globalization. This has stoked regional fascism in many states to such an obscene extent that at times it disrupts the national integrity. Such in-tolerances occur in the flourishing regions where there is lot of migration to take part in the development process. People should realize that the prosperity of a region is majorly due to its geographical location and natural resources and not due to a particular caste or tribe. So just based on nativity one can't claim ownership of all the resources, because based on this argument then all the resources would belong to the pre-Dravidian tribes who are the real ancestors of India. The other problem with this migration is the perceived threat to language and culture. I understand that preserving language and culture is very important for the social development of humans, but not at the cost of harboring hatred for our fellow countrymen. In-fact there are lot of forums like arts, literature and movies to develop these social tools and so people who are very passionate about language and culture should participate in these. And finally comes the mother of all intolerances in the form of female subjugation. Indian society has made great strides with respect to female emancipation, but the mindset of many Indian males still seems to be stuck in the medieval times. They aren't able to tolerate the sight of a 'alpha female' and find cowardly means of asserting their male supremacy, the most gruesome of them being the crime of rape.
To those who have tolerated my monologue on intolerance and have come so far, I would like to tell you that I am not a completely tolerant person myself. I have not much interest in religion, region or language and respect women a lot (Come home and ask my wife :) ) and hence have no issues with these topics. But I adore a lot of exceptional human beings and when someone talks ill of these people, I fume internally and argue with them crazily giving my everything for the argument. But once the argument comes to a closure, I forget about it then and there and never land at their door steps rampaging their personal properties and thrashing their loved ones. The reason I don't indulge in such anti-social activities is that I am very strongly convinced of my beliefs and also believe every individual is entitled to his own belief which might or might not concur with mine. For all the negativity surrounding intolerance, we also shouldn't forget the part some intolerant people have played in the advancement of mankind. If Newton had tolerated the fact that apples fall on the head rather than flying into the atmosphere, gravity would be existing everywhere except within our brains. If Mother Teresa had been tolerant of the sufferings of the under-privileged, she wouldn't have made a immeasurable difference to the lives of so many needy people. If Martin Luther King had been tolerant of racial segregation, African-Americans would still be treated as second class citizens. And if our freedom fighters had been tolerant of the British Raj, we would still be part of the British empire (in a state of decay though) with the only bright spot being that people would be respecting the concept of queues. So it is very essential that we be intolerant towards things - ignorance, sufferings and wrongful doings - that will help in the development of the human race. And stop being intolerant in those directions that might lead us back to the stone ages !
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