Lesser known than St Valentine's Day, February 14 this year is also the 20th anniversary of the issuing of the Fatwa against Salman Rushdie for his book The Statanic Verses.
I've read The Satanic Verses, and frankly don't see what the fuss was about. I suppose that Ayatollah Khomeini hadn't read the book, but I'm far from an expert on the workings of the religious mind so maybe there's something I didn't see. Either way, I'm glad that nobody was foolish enough to try to act on the Fatwa, and that Rushdie is still alive and well (I saw his cameo role in Bridget Jones's Diary again recently). It's a pity, though, that he had to live his life in fear for a decade because of the inability of an aged cleric to understand the modern world.
I recently read Rushdie's earlier book, Midnight's Children, for which he not only won the 1981 Booker Prize but also won a unique 'Best of Bookers' in 2008. Both well deserved prizes - it is a much better book than The Satanic Verses and presents a convincing picture of an India (and Pakistan) that few westerners know. Written in a disarmingly simple style, its message is powerful and moving. At times you feel that the true central character is Mumbai itself, Rushdie's birthplace and obviously a place that exerts a strong influence on its natives. But the story goes well beyond Mumbai and brings the reader with it brilliantly.
By coincidence Slumdog Millionaire, also a film with Mumbai as its unforgettable backdrop, came out not long after I read Midnight's Children. It presents another, but not inconsistent, view of that great city. I think we'll be hearing more and more from Mumbai as India moves more decisively towards the global mainstream.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment