"Besides being Dr B R Ambedkar's
favourite colour, blue was also the colour of the flag of the party
floated by Ambedkar Scheduled Castes Federation of India in 1942. Blue is also the colour of sky—a representation of non-discrimination, that under the sky everyone is believed to be equal..."
I watched recently, in aghast, Pariyerum Perumal. Of caste, creed and a community pushed aside for no valid reason. It gave me jitters. That old man. His cruelty - in the name of caste. The people. Their insensibility. Their so called pride. I am still, clueless, trying to justify all these. I read how caste is still prevalent in India. How this is not just a screenplay but the truth of the plight of the people.
Being born and bred in Malaysia, caste is not much of an issue. But, when I entered uni, I remembered being asked what I was.
Atta, my paternal grandmother hailed from Chidambaram. She told me their family was Mudaliars and was married into one, too. That word was plugged into some part of my brain. And, that is what I answered, every time I was asked what I was. Naivety. Or rather stupidity.
Ask me now, and I will tell you what I am.
I am human. My blood is red, just as the rest of you. I am not in any known hierarchy, and I do not want to be. I am Hindu. I will always be one. I love my religion. I love my God. I believe in goodness and being kind. I believe in being respectful to my elders. And, when I bid farewell to this world, I hope to have lived a life filled with love.
I hope you watch this movie. You, my reader. It is a beautiful, heart wrenching one which ends on a rather positive note - one of the reasons I want to recommend this movie. It creates a social awareness of people discriminated for no apparent reason. It questions equality. It questions our existence, humanity and compassion. It questions, above all, about life.
I never understood the significance of the colour blue, until I watched Pariyerum Perumal. I googled to learn about it and I found stories of Dr Ambedkar. I found Tenma, the Casteless Musical Collection. I found Pa. Ranjith. I found so many good reads that altered my perceptions.
Caste is just a five lettered word created by humans who want to justify their wrongdoings. Do not fall in that trap. Do not let your caste blind you.
Be a good human. That's all. Be loving, kind and thoughtful in every situation.
The movie opens with this beautiful number. Stay casteless. Stay beautiful. Stay you.
Shalu. R. signing off.
