An Advice To Naseeruddin Shah

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 13 June 2023 "The bubble of your perceived intellect always bursts when you start speaking too much." Salman Rushdie, quoting Rumi I'm a small fry when it comes to advising anyone, much less a person of Nasiruddin Shah's stature who has proven his mettle over the years. But I'm afraid, geriatric degeneration seems to have got the better of him. Of late, this otherwise balanced actor has begun to talk through his hat. He drew flak for his recent statement that no one speaks Sindhi in Pakistan. In fact, there're so many Muslims who speak Sindhi and it's a functional language in that country. Bhutto clan in Pakistan still speaks Sindhi despite most of its members having been educated in England. Naseeruddin Shah ------- Recently, Naseer Saheb said that he used his awards as washroom handles. His certain 'facts' about Mughals are also not correct. There's no gainsaying the fact that Nasiruddin Shah is one of the finest actors in the annals of Hindi, nay Indian, cinema and people look up to him. He's a role model to many aspiring actors. But in an attempt to sound candid and straightforward, his recent utterances reveal his mindset (read, Muslim mindset) which's sad. Once Khwaja Ahmad Abbas interviewed the great thespian Balraj Sahni for an Urdu daily. Abbas asked Sahni, "Aap Bahut Kam Bolte Hain Aur Kai Martaba Aisa Lagta Hai Ki Aap Koi Raay De Sakte Thay Lekin Dee Nahin. Aisa Kyon?" (You speak very little and a great many times when it seems that you could have given an opinion, you refrained from doing that. Why so?). The dignified Balraj Sahni smiled and said, “Main Laffaazi Se Zyada Kaam Ko Ahmiyat Deta Hoon" (I prefer work/s over rhetoric). So very true. These are golden words which must be followed not only by Naseeruddin Saheb but also by all loudmouths who have crowded the current political landscape of India. Perhaps, our PM is much more than in need of pondering over Balraj Sahni's statement made years ago. The problem with this country is that there's a bucketful of armchair thinkers, philosophers, exegetes and activists whose quivers are always full of wordy arrows. In his seventy years, Naseer seldom spoke about Hindu-Muslim divide. His wife, Ratna Pathak, is still a Hindu and his elder brother and the former VC of AMU, Zameer Uddin Shah retired from the Indian Army as a Lt. General. The entire family has been very educated and secular. But the same Naseer has begun to say things that reek of his faith. Agreed, Muslims are being targeted and they're often at the receiving end. But they too are belligerent and communal. Naseer chooses to keep mum on this aspect. Let's hope, sense will prevail and his estranged sanity will re-descend on him and he will speak less to earn more respect. ---- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/advice-naseeruddin-shah/d/129982 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism