Why blame Coldplay when we are guilty of the same crime?
When Coldplay released their new album, ‘Hymn for the Weekend’, little would they have expected the backlash it would face in India. The video, complete with sadhus, ruins, the kaali peeli taxis that define Mumbai, little children covered with Holi colours, and a cameo by Beyoncé dressed like a Bollywood actress, hands covered in henna, et al, has been accused of being stereotypical in its portrayal of India. Comparisons have even been made of it being like Slumdog Millionaire – showing India for what the western world wants to see it as, albeit with a Holi scene.
True, most of what is shown on the video is not what happens on an average day in the country, and yes, there may be a bit of stereotyping. But, in no way is the video being disrespectful to the culture. Moreover, isn’t it much ado over nothing? We crib about how the western world looks at us and paints us in a stereotypical light, but don’t we do the same to everyone else around us – our own people? So, those living south of the Vindhyas are oily haired, coconut eating, lungi clad, Madrasis; those in the north are pan chewing Biharis or bhaiyas, and those east are chow mein eating Chinkis, or Chinese.
Take the Bollywood film, Chennai Express, for instance – the film is replete with every cliché about South Indians, possible. From the irritating Hindi spoken with a heavy South Indian accent, to the half sarees, and the weird name – how many people are named Meenalochini Azhagasundaram? Or the film adaptation of Chetan Bhagat’s 2 States, for that matter, that shows a North Indian-South Indian love story. Possibly, one of the most stereotyped communities in the country would be the Punjabis, especially those belonging to the Sikh community! So, they are all loud, flashy, dance all the time, eat a lot, do not have really high IQ levels, and drink a lot – Balle balle. And, the Santa Banta jokes don’t help!
And while these stereotypes may be innocuous, we are also, unfortunately, one of the most racist nations in the world. We may not be ready to accept just how racist we are, but the facts are quite simple. Acts of crime and attacks against people who are by colour, looks or nationality, different, amount to plain racism. The recent attack on a Tanzanian woman by a mob that was incensed by the killing of a woman by an African driver, shows how intolerant we can be of others who are not like ourselves. The Tanzanian lady had done nothing wrong – her only drawback, she was an African, and by our inherent nature of stereotyping people – could be a slut, a thief, drug dealer. And this happened in a city like Bangalore, which is supposed to be a multicultural, information technology fueled, modern city.
The Tanzanian woman’s is not a one off case. Former Delhi law minister from the Aam Aadmi Party, Somnath Bharti, had taken a mob to the house of an African woman, in Delhi, in a midnight raid in January 2016. Bharti and his accomplices were booked under various sections such as 354 (outraging women’s modesty), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 147 (rioting). It is not just attacks against the Africans. People from the north eastern states of the country have also been targeted time and again and feel alienated form the rest of the country. Because of their features, they are often referred to as Chinese, made fun off, and beaten up many a times. Many societies and house owners even refuse to give their house on rent to people from other communities.
So, while we crib and cry over how the rest of the world still sees us in a typical light, we should maybe start pointing fingers at ourselves, and at how we perceive our own people. Else, apart from being racist, we may just turn out to be one of the most hypocritical nations as well.
