My views on My Name is Khan

It was 12th February, when the thought of writing about My Name is Khan sprung up in my mind. At first, I had second thoughts about it, owing to the matter that the film has shed light on. But then, I decided not to supress the voice that emanated within me, just to confirm to the voice of the outside world. So, before expressing my views on the movie, I would like to make few things clear. Firstly, I am not supporting any community or religion , by expressing my views on the film. Secondly, I have no intention of hurting anyone’s sentiments. Last but not the least, I have loved the film, because of the message it puts forth , which is a man’s behavior cannot be gauged by his religion.

I can’t recall the time when I had watched the film for the first time. But one thing I can certainly vouch for is, back then, the movie had changed my perception on couple of matters. This not only happened back then, but also this time.

This film made me come to terms with the fact that, if a person hailing from a particular community or perhaps religion commits a crime, a heinous one, we tend to ostracize the entire community or perhaps the entire religion. The person committed those crimes, not because he was from particular religion, he did it just to fulfill his motive. I am not defending any community or religion by stating this. But, I firmly believe that person’s wrongdoings, reflect his behavior, his perception, and not the entire community’s perception. So, it would be unfair to demean the entire community, because of the wrongdoings of a person or group of people for that matter.

Now shedding some light on the film that I want to express my views on. The film showcases how Americans dealt with Muslims , after 9/11 and other attacks on the country. It shows how Muslims were illtreated, were humiliated just because they followed Islam. I am not expressing my views or putting forth my stance, because of the religious angle. I would have stood by my words, irrespective of the religion being showcased in the film.

The scene wherein the protagonist’s mother tells him to identify the religion of a man holding a lollipop and man holding a sword, is still afresh in my mind. In that scene, she tells her son (Rizvan Khan- character portrayed by Shah Rukh Khan) that it’s not possible to identify the religion of a person by merely looking at the lollipop or the sword that the person is holding. Insaan sirf accha ya bura hota hai. Acche karma karnewala accha aur bure karma karnewala bura. These were the words of his mother. I would never forget these words in my life. Yeah lafz mere zehn mai ghar kar gaye hai.

Rizvan Khan had to suffer a lot, because of the message that he wanted to convey to the president of the United States and because he belonged to particular religion. “My name is Khan and I am not a terrorist.” His statement was miscontrued by the officials, and hence he was imprisoned. But that didn’t stop him from helping the people of Georgia. Khan ka yeah Kadam, uske mazhab ki jeet nahi, insaaniyat ki jeet hai. His deeds are an exemplar of the fact that love triumphs over hate. Nafrat aur mohabbat ki jung mai, aakhirkar jeet mohabbat ki hoti hai.

With this, I would like to conclude by saying that spread love wherever you go. Don’t ostracize someone or even support someone just because they belong to certain community or follow a certain religion.