Very recently a film on Kashmir kids Lamhaa was banned in Middle East even before its release. Part of Kashmir too objected Lamhaa. Even the Censor Board made the film cut a lot of dialogues and scenes and despite that the film got ‘A’ certificate so that many would not be able to watch it. This was done because it was assumed that the film was ‘anti-Muslim’. Few months back many objections were taken about another film My Name is Khan by Hindus. All Muslim countries rejoiced and with glittering shows, Khan film was shown in the Muslim world. Those who opposed the film were termed by a section of media, politicians and NGOs, etc as fanatics who have no sense of art. Same media, politicians and NGOs seem to have forgotten to even do ‘chun’ about their pet theory of freedom of speech, etc when Muslims are objecting to Lamhaa.
This is nothing but a cunning cartel in the film industry, media, politics and NGOs, etc. specifically created to influence judiciary and law makers as well as the budding young minds. Lamhaa is not the issue here; cunning cartel is. Such cartels are seen in almost all walks of life. Any profession, be it medicine, law, engineering, education…anywhere there are such cunning cartels pre-decided about any issue. Basis of their opinions and actions is not truth but either the perceived fact as they feel it or vested interests. We always see the same faces making similar arguments about ‘freedom of speech’ when Hindus /majority objects to anything. Same faces are seen even when Kashmiri jehadis allege fake encounters, same faces justify Naxals, same faces demean traditions and established institutions like marriage, culture and heritage, etc. In urban areas, they are seen on electronic media more because they happen to be typically urbanised, their arguments have no base of Bharat’s vast rural population and of course even the most electronic media – mainly selected 10 TV channels too are an urban phenomena which carters to just three per cent of Bharat’s population as many villages and even towns do not even have electricity – forget TVs and cable connections or DTH, etc!
Apart from media, such cunning ‘cartel mongers’ are seen even in sponsored conferences, seminars and in sponsored award ceremonies. They have only one agenda: Oppose everything that is a part of a rich art, culture and heritage and therefore, tradition of Bharat. Look at some of the peculiar types of their (how so predictable!) reactions: Living in relationship is great; but marriage? Oh! Outdated! Gay relationship is fabulous! History of Mughals – How glorious! But history of Sri Ram and Lord Krishna or Chatrapati Shivaji or Maharana Pratap? Outdated and anti-minority! Celebrations of Eid by cutting a goat or by flashy Iftar parties and celebration of Christmas by cutting a Turkey or burning candles? Oh! How very stylish! Celebrating Deepawali by distributing sweets of burning lamps? Eeks! How very stale and bourgeois!
Nude paintings of Durga, Saraswati and Bharatmata (all three almost looking same!) by M F Husain? Fantastic! Beautiful paintings of Raja Ravi Verma? Outdated! Astro-science in Bharat? Superstition! Tarot cards? Inspiring! I recall well that during Rameshwaram Ramsetu issue activities, an English offshoot of a media group was debating with me that Sri Ram was a fictional figure and therefore there was no question, of Ramsetu’s existence. Seeing the journalist’s name, I said, “As you believe that Jesus existed and a virgin girl delivered a child and yet she was a virgin which medical science obviously does not accept…” and lo! Cutting my sentence half way through (which almost all these cunning cartel category media-men love to do) the journalist almost fumed and yelled at me – “But that’s a fact, Togadiaji! Jesus, Virgin Mary all are facts; but Sri Ram is a fiction.” Now tell me, what does one term this as if not ‘cartelism’?
The most disturbing is that now such cunning cartel has sprung up in corporate! Recently, a few advertising men announced that they would focus more on ‘Islamic advertising’ in Bharat. Meaning? Advertising any brand / product is based mainly on the target group that is existing / potential customers. This cunning cartel justifies their openly discriminatory stand as a marketing strategy or in their lingo – brand positioning and planning! Their argument is that in Bharat Muslims are 15 per cent. It is a large chunk of customers and therefore the brands have to change their advertising stance suiting more to this 15 per cent to hell with the majority 85 per cent on whose money these MNCs (Multi-National Companies) and many Indian brands grew! They even argue that this so called Islamic advertising will not hurt Sanaatanis, Jains, Sikhs, and Bauddh, etc. How so? A famous soap of a Brit cum Dutch company (who kept its name only for Bharat starting with Hindustan when MNCs were thrown out of Bharat because they thought that by doing so, Indians will think that theirs was an Indian company!) advertised a mother teaching a little daughter during bath Babur ka beta Humayun, Humayun ka Beta Akbar! Message of the brand was that the bath with that soap was so refreshing that it even refreshed the child’s brains and even during bath the child can learn. Learn what? Babur progeny! Not Sri Ram’s great sons!
Many noticed this specifically planned advertising blitz. Few realised that it was a part of a bigger strategy of Islamic advertising. Cunning cartel types even ridiculed us as biased, when we expressed our concern over that advertisement. Now our concern has turned out to be true that the advertisement was not a one off incident. But a planned and sustained campaign to later launch a spate of Islamic Ads.
Most MNCs always had a separate advertising for Islamic countries focusing on customers there. But the serious matter is that using the 15 per cent Islamic population in Bharat (which grew at the cost of 85 per cent majority, which grew manipulating religion to reject family planning norm of 2 kids and which now grew to haunt even our marketing space!) the cunning cartel of such Islamic advertising promoters are nothing but ragging Bharat’s corporate ethos.
This too is NOT an isolated act. First they increased their population using religion as an excuse.
These cunning cartels are pests in the society who are very fast destroying Bharat’s social fabric which used to be (And to certain extent, still is!) full of glorious art, culture, heritage and wisdom. Let us isolate these pests and democratically socio-economically break such cunning cartels in every profession and in every field of Bharat.
(The writer is a renowned Cancer Surgeon & International Secretary General of VHP. He can be contacted on drtogadia@gmail.com)
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