I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.Evelyn Beatrice Hall
Following the constructed war hype, a culture of jingoism and hatred exists in both countries, there is a mass uproar against Pakistan artistes. Bollywood actors, singers and even sports personalities have been voicing their support for ban of Pakistani artistes in India. Those daring to differ are being bullied and publicly threatened.
While this step to restrict artistes is insane, what is dangerous is the way in which this is being made possible. This war against artistes of Pakistan is heavily tied with nationalism.
“For me, my country comes first” is what renowned personalities begin their statements with. It is no longer about supporting artistes or not, it is now about being “Indian” or not. In the garb of this, we are muzzling voices of dissent.
I began the article with quote of Evelyn Hall because it holds and should hold true for the World’s largest democracy. Democracy is a space of diverse views. There are arguments to support as well as to not support having Pakistani actors to work in India. But in the current situation, we cannot have a perspective.
There is no scope to agree or disagree. If we support the ban, we are citizens of this country. If we don’t, we need to be deported to Wagah border. For me, my country comes first and my country is of free thinkers. My country is a democracy.
In the name of ‘nationalism’, people are today supporting fanatics like MNS, Shiv Sena who have a record of inciting hatred, committing violence against our fellow countrymen, opposing women’s rights and attacking people on Valentine’s Day. We are supporting their open threat of vandalism and attack on anyone who supports Pakistani actors.
We must also think if this ban is a solution. Indian and Pakistani entertainment industry have always been dependent on each other. Indian music industry has always had Pakistani singers. In Pakistan, Indian movies are far more famous than Pakistani movies.
The reason for this is not love for the other, it is the fact that art is beyond borders. We like Pakistani artistes not because they are Pakistani but because their talent touches our heart. These emotions cannot be measured on the scale of nationalism. In fact, it is really not concerned with nationalism.
It is argued that banning Pakistani artistes will stop cross-border terrorism. How? Are we saying that it matters to the Pakistan government that India bans Pakistani actors? Are actors representatives of governments? They are not, and their government is really not bothered so banning them will send no message to them.
The only message that this will send is that Indians hate Pakistanis which in turn will create/sustain the public opinion that India is an enemy of Pakistan, an important tool to wage war.
A relatively valid argument is that Pakistani actors get money from India which reaches Pakistan government in the form of taxes. But isn’t the continued trade between India and Pakistan a more direct and prosperous source of income?
We also need to think more deeply about the potential of art in influencing mindsets. We must realise the power of these cross-border collaborations to counter stereotypes, misconceptions and bridge the gap of miscommunication.
Pakistani actors in India and vice versa have indirectly acted as peace ambassadors. People to people communication is an important aspect of peace building and conflict resolution.
We must ask for effective action against cross-border terrorism but that cannot be to end people to people communication and curb peace efforts. The way forward is to solve conflicts, not to sustain them.
We must also remember that despite all this, the government has not restricted people to people communication. It also officially announced that they will not stop giving visas to actors. Shouldn’t these acts by our own government encourage us to think more deeply?
We need to re-think this issue as an Indian, a rationalist and a democrat. If this issue is about being Indian, it should be about being a true Indian who respects democracy, the right to freedom of expression which constitutes the fundamentals of our constitution.
( Devika Mittal is pursuing PhD in Sociology from Delhi School of Economics. She is the Convener(India) of Aaghaz-e-Dosti, a joint Indo-Pak Friendship initiative. She tweets at @devikasmittal. The views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)