My name is Shah and I am a victim of Islamophobia...

So am in Delhi, the capital of the country supposed be where the 'dil' or the heart of the country lies but is that so??

Am apartment hunting in Rajender Nagar which is a place in central Delhi. 1st of all it is very difficult to get apartments in Delhi already and that too in Rajender nagar which is like a hub of IAS aspirants from all over the country, north south east west....And it turns out, it is even more harder for a muslim and that too from a rarely known far away island called Andaman..And the backdrop of recent Delhi blast did not help at all..

1st I do not find a decent enough place for my taste and finally after days of searching, sacrificing my quality study time(my exam is in 2 months and I gotta prepare for 9 papers) I kind of narrow down to this one flat which pretty much suited my requirements.My agent tells me that the owner wants to meet me in person..Fair enough!!!I go to meet him in his dingy 'office' in a petty little basement. The first thing he asks me is from which place I am..Clearly from his get up I could make out that he must neither be good in general knowledge nor geography so I did not expect him to understand where Andaman is and I took some time to explain him where it was and that it was definitely a part of India..He is not convinced..He asks me my surname and I say 'Shah' and he is confused further..Next thing he asks me is what caste I belong to..I am taken aback by this sudden question but I tell him patiently that I am a Muslim...And thats it..That did it..He did not appear confused now. He looked determined. He shook his head and gave me a look that I think unfortunately I'll remember the rest of my life.. He plainly denied me the house and looked at me as if I was some delinquent sitting there..

Now I am not one of the most religious type, but yes, I am a Muslim and I am definitely not ashamed of that. And I am not gonna let some ignorant snobby moron make me feel bad about it but somehow I can't help thinking about it. I keep reliving that moment and it feels like a slap on my face.

It raises a lot of questions in my mind. Hey I can understand that he needed to be sure of who is gonna stay in his house for safety and security reasons and all, am all for it.But whats with that look???He could have asked my background or that of my parent's or what they did for a living, Id proofs, etc etc there are many ways if security or safety was the point of concern.But that was clearly not the case.Whats with the stereotyping? 

India might be a free country politically or economically but are we free socially? from prejudices? from stereotyping? from xenophobia? from social inhibitions we hold?Why is there such a dire need to divide the world into 'us' and 'them'? And not only religion we have prejudices based on caste, class, region, community etc etc...and the saddest part is that this prejudice plagues both Bharat and India. How can we move forward with attitudes that are backward?

I may never be able to find the answers to all my questions.All I can do is request you guys that next time when you make a decision about a stranger please be sure that it is based on facts and not on your prejudices.

And P.S. For the zillionth time, All Muslims are not terrorists.

So, Whats in?

        A very strange thought came to my mind today. Every era in time scale  is defined by some striking features that took place during that time, something which governed the thinking of maximum number of people, or to use a phrase appropriate in this era , the 'in thing'. As people evolved, their thinking also evolved and so did their concept of 'in thing'.

      In earlier times, and I do not mean some distant past but maybe India 30-40 yrs earlier, conformity was the rule of thumb. Everything and everyone needed to be similar in thoughts, beliefs, presentations etc. There was very little tolerance of ambiguity. People who obeyed the rules of the society where held in highest esteem and those who tried to be different were the deviants. Kids did not question, women did not come out of the house except for fetching water maybe, arrange marriage was the rule, there were typical dress code for everyone decided by  the society details of which I dont think I need to go to..

    But as the society grew and modern consciousness emerged , the status quo was challenged and era of being different ushered in. It grew out of the monotony created by conformity and also support by the evolution of human mind which made 'out of the box thinking' possible. So, kids are not punished for asking questions, open minded and modern homes accept love marriages, women can be CEO or world leaders or auto drivers, people can be gay,or can have sickening pale skin or pink hair and yet be admired.Moreover,  these things do not appear strange or weird or wrong anymore but fascinating. Though there are still pockets in the world where it might still be considered strange but that's a different story altogether.

    The society has become 'broad minded', there is more openness, greater tolerance of ambiguity. Different is appreciated and many a times sought after. Hence everyone is trying to be different, sometimes trying too hard to their own detriment and of others also, like the Norwegian maniac shooter guy.

   As the world is truly turning into a global village, and multiculturalism is the new world identity, the individual identity will only be recognised if it is different enough to add a new dimension to the chaos or should I say to the 'new world order'. So, if I am different, I am 'in'.........