Mumbai, India –
Few hours afta Hindu nationalist groups do protest wey dem dey demand make dem remove 17th-century Mughal emperor Aurangzeb tomb, kasala burst for Nagpur, Maharashtra. For evening of March 17, five civilians and at least 33 police pipo wound as dem report plenty arson and stone-throwing. Dis one make police put curfew for some parts of di city.
But Nagpur no be where dem bury di Mughal emperor wey reign pass. Aurangzeb tomb dey about 500 km west for one district wey dem name afta am, Aurangabad, until dem change di name for 2023 to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, afta di second Maratha warrior king wey Aurangzeb kill for 1689.
Di Muslim men wey dem arrest for di stone-throwing no dey defend di emperor tomb. Instead, dem dey vex say earlier dat day, Hindutva activists burn one green ‘chadar’—replica of holy carpet wey dem dey use for shrine—because dem believe say Quranic verses dey di fabric.
Bollywood sef dey add fuel to di wahala.
For March 18, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis talk for state legislature say di vexation against Aurangzeb, wey many Indians no like because of how e destroy Hindu temples and e strict Islamic rule, don dey ginger again because of Bollywood.
Di latest historical movie, Chhaava, na biopic about Chhatrapati Sambhaji, di son of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji, wey start di Maratha empire.
Di movie, wey dem translate as ‘lion cub,’ don make di highest money for Bollywood dis year, pass $86 million (Rs 750 crore) for box office collections for just one month. Di Vicky Kaushal-starrer join di list of Bollywood films wey dey mix historical storytelling with propaganda. Films like The Kashmir Files, The Sabarmati Report, Article 370, and Swatantrya Veer Savarkar dey push one-sided narratives wey dey reinforce ideologies and cause division.
When The Kerala Story come out for 2023, di trailer talk say over 32,000 women from Kerala join Daesh, but later dem reduce di number to only three.
Di same Islamophobic message dey for The Kashmir Files, wey dey talk about di exodus of Hindu Kashmiri Pandits from di Muslim-dominated Kashmir valley for di 1990s. Singapore even ban di film because dem say e dey “provocative and one-sided.”
For India, even Prime Minister Narendra Modi recommend make pipo watch di movie, and Hindu hardliners for cities like Agra, Hyderabad, and Bhatkal do protest make dem show di film.
For some cinemas, dem record pipo dey threaten to boycott Muslim-owned businesses or dey shout ‘Jai Shri Ram.’ Di chant wey before mean ‘victory to Ram’ don turn slogan for Hindu nationalist aggression.
Bollywood nationalist films no just dey change history, dem dey simplify am. Movies like Chhaava, Samrat Prithviraj, and Swatantrya Veer Savarkar dey show Hindu rulers as heroes and Muslim rulers as oppressors, wey dey cause division.
Hindutva leaders for Maharashtra, including Chief Minister Fadnavis, don vow say dem go take action against any disrespect to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj. But even some Hindu leaders before don criticize Sambhaji leadership.
Aurangzeb, wey many Indians no like, spend e last years dey live simple life, dey sew prayer caps and choose simple grave near Sufi shrine for Khultabad. But Bollywood dey prefer to show one-sided stories wey dey remove di complexity of history.
Di demand to remove Aurangzeb tomb no be new, but for March 9, Maharashtra Chief Minister support am, say dem go follow legal process. Hindu groups dey use rallies and films like Chhaava to push di agenda.
For March 20, di ASI put tin-sheet barrier for di tomb for Khultabad and police increase security. Two days before di Nagpur violence, Hindutva group Vishwa Hindu Parishad threaten say dem go remove di tomb like how dem destroy Babri Masjid for 1992.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra police don tell social media platforms to remove about 140 posts wey fit cause wahala. Dem don arrest 65 pipo, including members of Hindu groups like VHP and Bajrang Dal.
Di Nagpur violence no be isolated case. E dey show how di system dey use religion to divide pipo, with films dey ginger historical grievances, politicians dey amplify am, and street-level wahala dey turn am to violence.
