This month marked 77 years since one of the world’s most violent religious conflicts: the partition of India and Pakistan, which claimed more than a million Hindu and Muslim lives and displaced over 15 million people. A people that once lived together were now forced to choose sides. Families were torn apart. The bloodshed didn’t end there and neither did the hatred, as the countries fought several more wars in the years to come. On either side of the border, my generation grew up hearing the worst of each other. Most of the narratives we read in newspapers or watched in the cinema portrayed the other in bad light. The enmity and hatred were and continue to be so deep rooted that it affects religious groups in both nations. I cannot count the number of times I have heard an Indian Muslim being called a Pakistani in a derogatory tone. Ever since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) first came to power in 2014, these slurs have only become more frequent and toxic.
There have been many instances in which I have witnessed Muslims being told to ‘go to Pakistan’, constantly made to feel unwelcome in their own country. It would take pages to detail all the complexities of the relationship between both the countries and the effect on their religious minorities. That is why I choose to talk about a heartwarming moment that took place at the recent Paris Olympics. In the finals of the javelin throw, Arshad Nadeem from Pakistan won the gold, defeating Neeraj Chopra from India. Reporters from both countries thronged to the rural hometowns of both athletes to interview their families. Neeraj’s mother won the hearts of millions on both sides when she said that Arshad was also like her son and that she was happy for him. Arshad’s mother went on to say the same and called Neeraj her son. This mutual respect and love from two mothers across the border, one a Hindu and one a Muslim, had a much deeper message than just sportsmanship: that despite the politics that divide us and the hatred we have endured in the past, there is so much more that unites us.
Yes, there are borders and fences that separate us, but we share so much more, our culture, cuisine, language and history. What was even more heartwarming was the barrage of comments on social media from both Indians and Pakistanis, Hindus and Muslims, showering both the athletes with praise. I began to wonder if I was on the same platform where I otherwise see only hateful, spiteful, vengeful exchanges between Hindus and Muslims and Indians and Pakistanis. Seeing this gave me hope that there are mothers who still teach their children not to hate someone because they are different, there are still youngsters who choose to let the past be the past and choose unity. But it also got me thinking about why we aren’t doing more to leverage the power of sports and arts in peacebuilding between religious communities. Both are extremely powerful tools. Yes, it may or may not resolve complicated geopolitical challenges. But can it address hatred? I believe so. Sports has the unique ability to bring people together across borders, cultures and religions and everyone is required to have respect for the rules and each other.
My mind now races to the state of Manipur, where the ongoing ethnic/communal conflict has resulted in two communities being completely cut off from each other and thousands have been killed and displaced. Children are growing up filled with hatred for the other community. What can be done to quell this hatred? Can sports play a role in the state that has produced over 50 players for the men and women’s senior national football teams, bringing children and youth from both communities together to give them a platform where they realise they are not that different? Or cinema? I remember how most of the Indian movies I grew up watching always had a Pakistani villain. It’s surprising how much movies can influence young minds, how people really start to believe what they see on screen. I also remember how in 2015, for the first time, there was a movie titled ‘Bhajrangi Bhaijan’ where a Pakistani was shown in good light. It immediately began to change the mindset of young Indians towards Pakistanis.
Cinema is probably the biggest influencer in South Asian culture, where actors have huge influence over people. Also, for a population that is still largely illiterate, it is visual mediums like cinema that influence people’s thoughts and attitudes. I wonder what impact it would make if we had more movies about religious harmony and peaceful coexistence. Sports and the arts are powerful tools and there should be more intentional use of it to bring people closer to each other and stop hate. As the Most Reverend Desmond Tutu once said, ‘hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.’ Likewise, we ought to see, capture and talk about moments that display hope, in the midst of all the evidence to the contrary.
Source: Christian Solidarity Worldwide’s India Researcher
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