April 19, 2021
Monday
Mumbai, India
So it’s another beginning to a long, mundane, typical work week. It’s about 32 degrees here in Mumbai and I’m just stuck to my laptop like a leech to an open wound. YouTube is open in a separate Chrome tab, like always, and I’m scrolling through pages and pages to find a suitable song to match my mood at the moment. While doing so, YT suggests a few songs based on my search history, two of which are the reason for me writing this right now- the first being the soulful sufi Bhar Do Jholi Meri in Adnan Sami’s voice from Bajrangi Bhaijan, and the other being the heart-wrenching tribute to the ultimate God of Gods Shiva Namo Namo from the late Sushant Singh Rajput-starrer Kedarnath.
And why do I mention this, you ask? Because the sheer coincidence of the two songs being recommended together was a pleasant surprise and made YT algorithms look not all that bad. The two very different backgrounds and settings of the songs and yet them being so similar, almost like two sides of the same coin, hit me hard.
Be it history books, albeit very sadly sometimes the people we know and love, be it the society, or the media- everyone everywhere has shown how Hinduism and Islam are two different entities. And this is seen in its harshest form today. Many of us including myself write Hinduism as my religion is all forms and applications. But I find it extremely difficult to identify myself as a Hindu. I cannot identify myself as anything more than an Indian woman. I find it a tedious task going to temples to only stand in long queues and sitting through pujas and yogyas and mantras, and this I mean with absolutely no disrespect to anyone or anyone’s beliefs whatsoever. But I enjoy the beautiful architecture of religious places, the heart-touching songs played in them and the peaceful and calming aroma of incense that accompany them.
Coming back to the songs- bhar do jholi meri is such a beautiful appeal to the higher power to shower his/her blessings on the poor, suffering souls on earth. The lines “aah nikli hai toh chaand tak jayegi / tere taaron se meri dua ayegi” send shivers down my spine every single time!
And what can I say to do justice to Amit Trivedi’s beautiful beautiful voice singing “amrit sabhi mein baant ke / pyala vish ka tune khud peeya”. It brings me to tears every time I hear it!
It hurts me so deeply to see the things happening around us, to hear people label a religion as good and the other as bad, and to witness basic humanity being a degrading, crumbling mess. I never imagined growing up in a world, in a country where one could be labeled so many things based on what his religion is. We rush to theatres to watch Shahrukh Khan’s movies. We rush to theatres to watch Hrithik Roshan’s movies. We love reading Tagore. We love reading Khaled Hosseini. We dance to Sonu Nigam’s tracks and we feel proud to call A.R. Rahman as our own. And let’s not forget how we go absolutely gaga over the legendary former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Why can’t we do the same with our colleagues, our neighbours, and everyone we meet? It shakes me to my very core to even think of our kids growing up in a world that is nothing but a sham.
I’m Sitasri, I’m a good person, and I’m just another person trying to cover the cracks of humanity with the usless tape of words. I’m not a Hindu, I’m not a Muslim, I’m an Indian and a human being. That’s all I know, and that’s all I care about.
#LongingsOfTheBrokenHeart
#LoveAboveAll
#PeaceToAll
Sitasri_author02111994 