Reinventing the definition of what ‘Indian’ means

THE article “Row over Miss India pageant” (Sunday Tribune Herald, August 6) refers.

According to the article, the problem was that the pageant claimed to be an Indian cultural event, but was not so due to items rendered by some contestants.

Farook Khan dismissed the complaints as baseless. So should we just take his word for it?

In the first place, does he know what or who is Indian and what Indian culture is? After all, at one of these pageants some years ago, he started ranting and raving about Israel and Palestine, as if these two countries had anything to do with Indians, Indian culture or Miss India pageants.

We are well aware of all the attempts to reinvent anybody or anything connected with the Middle East as Indian. Zakeeya Patel, who is not culturally Indian herself, regards herself as the ultimate authority on all things “Indian”. She and the likes of Saira Essa are convinced Wayne Parnell is Indian: Iranian Ayeh Khalatbari is Indian; Roshan Isaacs, Joey Rasdien or anybody who is Cape Malay, coloured or African, provided they are Muslim, is “Indian”.

So why is the so-called “only genuine voice of the community” silent over the travesty of who or what is Indian? Why do they not call for the scrapping of Mela (a Hindu religious event) on TV3?

Or are they so racist that they agree with Essa, Patel and others connected to Mela that anybody from any part of the world who is Islamic or Muslim is Indian. Why? Islam is not an Indian religion. So what is the connection to India, Indians or Indian culture?

The most bizarre aspect of all this ridiculous “Indianising” is that recently (June 27) in a letter titled “Palestine vs Musgrave”, by M Ismail of Musgrave, published in the Tongaat and Verulam tabloid, the writer claims “our (Muslim) allegiance to Palestine cannot and never will be compromised”.

Every chance they get, they don’t only leap into the Indian space and take charge, but they bring along a lot of others and “Indianise” them as well. Yet they still talk about “authentic Indian experience”.

KAMINI PRAKASH Riet River