REINSTATE BANGALI PRIDE
KAJAL CHATTERJEE
Be it for a film shooting, participation in any event or personal affairs - - - whatever might be the purpose; as soon as a Bollywood star lands at Kolkata airport, the Bengal media (visual and print) start following him on every step like maniac till his/her return to Bombay and if any "Bytes" or interviews get gained, then surely "heaven" descends upon the earth akin to "Aemon Swapno Kokhone Dekhini Aamini/ Maatite Je Aaj Swargo Aeseche Naami"!
And if the "Mahaprabhu" non-Bengali star utters that patent "Aami Tomake Bhalobasi" in broken Bangla or shouts "Kaemon Aacho Kolkata" and thereafter like a cream topping upon the cake comes up with the declaration of that much repeated (since decades) "love" for "Rosogolla-Misti Doi-Sandesh"; then the enthusiasm of the Bengali journalist/ reader/viewer (possessed of slavish mindset) is seen to be believed! ! As if at last we "Bengalis" (community of Rabindranath-Nazrul-Ramakrishna-Bibekananda) have finally "arrived", thanks to the "certificate" awarded by Bollywood!
And if an upcoming Bolly hero/heroine suffers a tiny cut in the left toenail while shooting in a Bombay studio or within his/her apartment, detailed report and follow up continue for days in the Kolkata media with the reporters and readers crying with such a worry as if the country's present and future have got endangered!
Manoj Mitra. Film and theatre actor, dramatist, play director, writer - such a versatile multifaceted talent forms one of the rarest of rare in the history of Indian cultural world. Had Manoj Mitra been a Hindi speaker and remained associated with Hindi film theatre (even if he formed part of Tamil Telugu Marathi Punjabi Assamese Odia culture), he would have been honored with Padma Vibhushan or Padma Bhushan award many years ago! And had he been a Gujarati in "New India", the title of even Bharat Ratna was guaranteed for Mitra!
But actually neither New Delhi nor India had ever honored such a legendary doyen like Manoj Mitra with even a Padma Shri or any other national award. However, in a country where the Himalayan Sandhya Mukhopadhyay gets offered merely a Padma Shri, that too almost at the fag end of her life; it is nothing but a "crime" of sorts to expect better treatment towards another Bengal icon from the national mandarins!
Also passing away of Manoj Mitra did not create even a minor ripple in the media and society outside Bengal (except Tripura). Far from publication of any editorial or article as obituary for Mitra, even a report of few sentences also revolving around the death of this legendary Bengali artist had been conspicuously absent!
Thereafter it was the turn of Uma Dasgupta to leave this world forever. Yes, her film career started and ended with a single film only; but she will be immortalized in the hearts of true film connoisseurs, thanks to her outstanding portrayal of Durga in one of the milestones in world film history - - 'Pather Panchali'. Despite this reality, the newspapers of India (outside Bengal) did not feel any need to publish even a small two-line report upon passing away of Dasgupta!
Perhaps the rhetoric of "artist art music cinema drama has no race/ region/ language" is applicable for the culture and artists associated with Hindi Urdu Tamil Gujarati and the rest (except Bangla)! Surely this is the reason why Bengalis remain immersed in Bollywood and music film dance culture of all states by neglecting their very own!
On the other hand, what a scandalous indifference towards the artists associated with the Bengali language and their works of art by the Central government and people of the rest of India, as if West Bengal and Bangla does not exist in the country - - for whose freedom, the community which has sacrificed the maximum through lives blood and land respond to the name of Bengalis!
It seems that all the responsibility and "burden" of acting "pan-Indian" by discarding all norms of "Kupomondukota" needs to be borne by the Bengalis only in the entire country! In contrast, Bengali language art culture and artists hardly get treated as worthy to be recognised and celebrated in rest of India!
Till how long will the Bengalis "proudly" imitate the others ("Aemon Gorbo Kore Porer Nokol Korey/ Aamader Chhara Aar Kothao Paabe Na" as taunted in the film "Ogo Bodhu Sundori" through the lips of Uttam Kumar) by immersing in Bollywood and alien culture just to make hollow bankrupt claims of "generosity"! When will the Bengalis learn to revive their self-respect by discarding pseudo-nationalism and slavish mindset towards all things and persons Bolly and non-Bengali!