She was born with skin as white as snow and hair that shone like gold. Beautiful like the heavens above, the warriors and sailors were yearning for a glimpse. From the fair skinned Aryans to Alexander the great, followed by the Mughals and the Europeans; it was hard to resist the tantalizing stories of her mystical beauty, so they came and came again and slowly took it all. The warriors knew that a family so old, holds its roots strong so they created walls. Walls that led to barriers and even bigger dividers. It wasn’t until a weak petite soldier stood up one day and said enough is enough and started walking miles to create salt and fight the gold diggers. People laughed and said, break an empire with salt? He said sure, and like a turtle, he slowly and steadily won the race, making her free again. and so was born modern India.
India was free and once again welcomed cultures from far and near; but something was different. The abundance was missing, the brotherhood was gone and there was a new ruler, the people called him God. God he was present in all forms. Some thought he was dark complexioned while some thought he was fair like the Aryans who came centuries ago. There was confusion, but the people of India were used to rulers, after all they had had so many of them, so they followed again and they continued to let their God govern their decisions.
When things went wrong they prayed to him and when their wishes were granted, they thanked him and went on with their lives. When things went wrong again, they believed in him again and prayed, but this time their wish wasn’t granted, so they went and sought advise from a neighbor who claimed to have a direct connection with God. The direct connection said, “to get something you have to give something too.” The giving happened and created huge houses where God lived with his direct connection. They lived in luxury while his disciples sat outside waiting for a morsel; and so continued the story of India, until an alien space ship landed and out stepped an extra terrestrial.
The extra terrestrial was stark naked like truth and he walked the earth with bare feet. He knew no language for the purest thoughts are felt and not spoken. He then saw another one who looked at him, excited he ran to meet him, but this other one, while he was similar did not feel the same. He had wickedness in him. He stole the aliens only possession – his communicator to his home planet and ran away. The alien didn’t know what do now, so he started walking in the hope to find his remote communicator. In his quest, he learnt the language and started asking questions. His questions were confusing to the people of India. They thought he was ridiculing them. The started saying “PeeKay hain kya,” which translates to “are you drunk.” The alien in his innocence thought they named him PK, and he was happy he had a name. His questions continued, and when India got tired of answering his questions, they finally said, “we don’t know, ask God.”
God; thought PK, and so started his journey to find God. He went to the temples, they told him to go to the church, he went to the church, they told him to go to the mosque, he went to the mosque they sent him back to the temples. He thought maybe it was the wrong kind of God. He looked around; he saw people praying to stones, praying to trees, worshiping cows and it only made him more confused. He asked more questions and finally met the “Man of God.” The one man who said he had answers to all the questions for God spoke directly to him. PK challenged him and all who listened to him.
His questions were simple and yet baffling. So is the story of the newest Bollywood hit movie PK.
PK, the movie; brings forth the bigotry of Indian religion in a humane and fun way. Opponents or the
puritans have criticized the movie for its attack on Hinduism thus missing the whole point of the movie. The movie does not attack Hinduism, but rather brings forth the point that hinduism like Swami Vivekanand said “is a way of life.” and not a religion confined by set guidelines. Every state in India celebrates Diwali (the most revered Hindu festival) in a different manner, then how can it be a confined religion. Hinduism is more of a belief. Over centuries of slavery and blending of cultures, religion crept into culture of Hinduism. I may be wrong, but at the essence of Hinduism is OM, perhaps you have heard it at every yoga class. What does it mean? Again, its entirely your interpretation, some say it is the Holy trinity, some say it is the infinite universe and the very embodiment of our soul. There are as many interpretations, as there are people.
The movie shines light on the fact that a very large majority in India are agonistic believers in denial. While we know that God does not want us to walk bear foot for miles to have our wishes fulfilled, we still do it for the fear of God. This includes me too. I know that God is not going to punish my family if I don’t stay hungry and thirsty all day, and yet every year I look forward to Karwachauth (the most sacred festival for a Hindu married wife) but only if you are from Northern India. Wives from Southern India even though Hindu are exempt from this, they have their own rules 🙂
The movie is 3 hours long, but it doesn’t for a moment have a dull moment. It is a brilliant narrative of the adage “faith begins where logic ends.” It is brilliant for its capability to shine light on a delicate topic in a non threatening manner. So the question is why is it generating such a conflict of opinions, I think; because of the ending.. the movie rather than having a “all is well” Happy Ending, leaves the audience with questions in their mind. It does not give any answers, which personally I think, is again a stroke of brilliance, because religion is very personal.
It left me feeling agnostic and yet I am afraid to stop believing.
