Unsettling thoughts over RNBDJ

Soumyajit Ghose
Films have a lasting impact over me especially when it essentially tries to define any particular relationship with a new perspective. As part of the popular belief, films are considered reflection of our cultures, traditions, behavioral patterns, thoughts and actions. Sometimes it also reflects the ambiguity that an individual undergoes in various real life situations. This ambiguity not only perturbs my thoughts but also intervenes into the intrinsic beliefs so as to affect a crossover of reflections.

I happened to view a movie named “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi”, a typical Shah Rukh Khan movie. The movie was typical in the sense that Shah Rukh is famous for emotional, romantic themes in his movies.

However, the cause for my unsettled thought was the concept of the movie wherein the lead character Suri views “Rab” or God in his wife, the female lead of the movie, Tani. I was perturbed over the fact that how can someone view the Almighty in his own wife. Given the fact that God or Almighty exists in every life form in accordance with the scriptures, why is not the male lead in the film able to view the Almighty in other people also. Is he so much entranced so as to view the Almighty in only his wife and not in any other life forms? Viewing the Almighty or God in others is like attaining the highest level of thought wherein the human being is completely disillusioned to the core. Showcasing the value in the film is indeed appreciative while its narrow definition – limiting it to the wife only – is really disheartening.

The character in the movie attributes his beliefs, prayers to his love, his wife. Love has been attributed with anything and everything positive. Some of the philosophers and poets have also attributed love to the Almighty. In accordance with the Hindu Philosophy, God or Almighty is considered absolutely pure and is the major source of disillusionment. Since, the female form in this world is universally considered as representative of “Maya” or Illusion. How can Suri’s wife in the film be only identified with God or the Almighty?

The Upanishads in its writings talks about “Twat Vam Asi”. It means that ‘thou have the spark’ or in other words a spark of the divine resides in our self i.e in every life form including me. In other words the Almighty already exists in all life forms – men, women and all. It is beyond my understanding why the movie has to specifically highlight the universal truth about God or Almighty to define a simple Husband and Wife relationship in the film. It seems the concept of the movie was designed to encash upon the complete dearth of knowledge in this regard among the youngsters who are responsible in making the film super successful. Not to forget it is Shah Rukh Khan’s youth fans who make his films a Superhit.

The film is one of most successful films of the year 2008, despite the fact that the film introspects into a complex concept. Moreover, the film goes on to highlight the intricacies of husband-wife relationship through the lens of spiritualism. The conditioning of love with abstract concepts thoroughly disintegrates my rational thought and continues to be so whenever the song “Tujhme Rab Dikta Hai” (I visualize the Almighty in you) is played around my ears.

Obscenity on the Wheel

Soumyajit Ghose
One of the most attention grabbing view while riding on a two-wheeler is watching couples expressing their abundance of love on the bike itself. This is in itself a very spectacular view from the point of view of an amateur onlooker. Considering the fact what you are viewing right on the road, the sight creates ripples in your mind as to what has occurred to these couples so as to express such profound love while on the bike and more so on the road.

We (I and my friend) were returning on the bike after attending the special classical programme of famous singer Shubha Mudgal at Ravindra Bhawan, Bhopal. Under the spell of classical music (with constant rendition by the singer) and discussing the same, it so happened that suddenly we came across a couple who were profusely busy in an obscene act of love on the bike itself. The sight could be well distracting for anyone riding so close. Immediately another bike with two young lads was seen viewing the same act with utmost interest. They made some ugly remark which was smartly ignored by the couple. The incident was really an eye-opener as it revealed the intricacies of it and the ensuing acts.

The attitude of the couple can be described as an act of public notoriety causing inconvenience to others. With the law banning public obscenity, the couple seems to be consciously engaged in the act knowing the lackadaisical attitude of the law keepers. The couple was mindless of the consequences of such act that seem trivial to them while having the potential to blow into a crime. Such small act of unprovoked illustration of love amounts to sending wrong signals to the onlookers. They seem to view it as an open invitation to the privacy of the couples. This open invitation is quickly transformed into an eve-teasing act with young lads finding it easy to eve-tease the couple. With a little more provocation, the act turns ugly with molestation and sexual abuse. Such acts of eve-teasing are very common in the city streets considering the high numbers of couples engaging in public obscenity.

Such incidents increase in number with the profile of the city. With the huge amount of eve-teasing in the city streets, both registered and unregistered, it is not surprising that the figures of cases involving sexual abuse, molestation and rape are very high. With the police too busy in curbing the acts of terrorism, such incidents are considered a minor thing until it transforms into a major incident.

What is really disturbing is the people’s reaction to such obscenity and their stance on the issue. The couples engaged in the act consider it to be their conjugal freedom while the onlookers seem pleased at teasing them in the public. The fact missing is restraint, both on the part of the onlookers and by the couples. The couples on their part do not want to restrict such act to their privacy while the spectator seems to be free to eve-tease anyone on the street. The question lies as to who should exercise restraint? - the Couple or the spectator.