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| Wider Lessons of Khan Calls Bluff of Shiv Sena Mumbai Experience | | | By Balraj Puri | 2/25/2010 1:48:02 AM |
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The set back that parochial form of Maharashtra regionalism has recently received may be controverted with progressive potentialities it had cone displayed. Its experience is of wider relevance in other parts of the country also and needs a more thorough debate than has taken so far. First, let us recall what happened in Mumbai.
Overwhelming response of Mumbaikars to My Name Is Khan in defiance of Shiv Sena’s call of its boycott, will have deeper lesson and for longer period than any other contemporary event. Though multiplexes were reluctant to open the show in the morning due to the threat of the Sena, soon the houses were full as police arrived to provide protection.
So far Sena was used to be handled by kid gloves and its threats used to work. But this time its bluff was called. Though police was deployed in large number, still no action was taken against the leaders of Sena.
Whatever differences one may have with the RSS, it has to be conceded that it took the first initiative in exposing the threat of Sena’s parochial regionalism as a threat to its concept of extremist nationalism. The BJP dutifully followed suit and its spokesperson in Mumbai is said to have arranged two private shows for the glitterati of the town to convince them that there was nothing objectionable in it. Later it reiterated that despite differences with the Sena, the alliance with it would continue. This has demonstrated how two kind of parochialism clash and weaken each other.
These development emboldened the Congress party also. Its General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, in his usual novel style had a one day round on local trains. Sena could not do any thing to prevent it.
This further emboldened Shahrukh Khan also who refused to apologize and asserted his right as an Indian for free expression of his views. After all what was his crime? He regretted non inclusion of Pakistan cricketers in IPL which many other Indians had done. Why was SRK the only target of the Sena’s ire? Except that he was a Muslim? But the foregoing development had somewhat lowered the morale of the Sena and it withdrew the call for boycott of SRK’s film.
Sena Chief Bal Thackery recovered his morale when Sharad Pawar visited him. Whatever transpired between them, the visit was untimely and unwise. Pawar is an important member of the union cabinet and his party is an ally of the Congress in the Maharashtra government. It was after his visit that Thackery revived his call for boycott of the SRK’s film.
Sena’s spokesman has discounted the extent of popular response to the film. But even it would not deny that SRK’s popularity rating at the national level is far higher than Shiv Sena, if at all it has any. How could North Indians, whose boycott is the latent plank of the Sena have any admiration for it? Even in the BJP ruled state of Gujarat, film was shown to packed hours despite the protest of other members of the Sangh privar like Bajrang Dal and VHP, besides Sena. Internationally also the film has set a record of the rates of tickets. Above all, Shah Rukh Khan has emerged as an icon of Indian nationalism and has emboldened other voices of dissent. Karan Johar who, for instance, had apologized to Shiv Sean for using Bombay instead of Mumbai, in his film, had offered an apology to Shiv Sena and to correct his “mistake,” has now regretted to have done so.
The Shiv Sena had survived on hate campaign and lack of courage of its opponents. Sometimes South Indians were its target. At other time it whipped up hatred against Muslims. In 1984, Sikhs were attacked. Its current tirade is against the North Indians.
It we go back, at one time the leftists were champions of regional nationalism and apart from Maharashtra championed it elsewhere also, when they believed that it had progressive cause potentialities. It did serve a progressive and also acted as a check on chauvinistic nationalism. Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, for the formation of a Maharashtra state, was led by the leftists who became a formidable force when socialist leader George Fernades was called a giant killer after defeating SK Patil, Congress strong man of Mumbai. It was also a period when socialist leaders like Asoka Mehta, Nath Pai, Madhu Limaye and NG Gore were returned to Parliament. It also saw rise of the communist leader SA Dange and trade union movement led by his party. Whey could not the progressive character of Maharashtra regional nationalism be maintained for long? Why could not its progressive icons, like social reformers, be projected instead by distorted and chanvistic image of the symbols that Shiv Sena adopted. For a while it served Congress purpose for weakening the leftist stronghold.
Bengali and Kashmiri patriotism have also shown its positive and negative potentialies. Jyoti Basu’s could set up a record of three decade rule of CPI(M) led government as a champion of Bengali patriotism and could introduce radical land reforms. But failure of the West Bengal government to reconcile aspirations of Bengali patriotism with those of sub-regional identities was the main cause of the collapse of this citadel of communism.
Similarly it was due to strength of the sentiments of Kashmiri nationalism that it could maintain remarkable communal harmony in 1947 when the entire subcontinent was engulfed in communal conflagration. Land reforms in Kashmir were also unparallel for its radical content. It was in turn encouraged by India, Soviet Union, America and Pakistan. It could not throw a powerful leadership of its own and control its direction, moreover, its failure to come to terms with the urges of the other regions and non-Kashmiri speaking communities, led to many complications in what is called Kashmir problem. If rightly handled even smaller identities play a positive role. After all it was caste politics that stemmed the Hindutva wave in the UP and Bihar. The advantage of India’s rich diversity is that excesses of one often check those of the other.
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