I do not understand the inner politics of the Hindi film industry. But I do understand something far more basic and far more important. A human being’s right to speak. An Oscar winning artist, AR Rahman, expressed how he felt. He spoke from his lived experience. You may agree or disagree with him.You may even strongly reject his view. That is how free societies function. What is unacceptable is what followed. People who were praising him till yesterday suddenly discovered horror stories about his character. Colleagues queued up to disown him. His faith was dragged into the argument. His professionalism was questioned. His art was belittled. All because he spoke. If you disagree, say you disagree. Argue facts, present a counter view. What happened instead was humiliation, character assassination and moral policing. And this is no longer just about one artist. This is how freedom dies. Not overnight, not with one incident. But slowly and steadily. By making examples out of people who dare to speak their minds. Today it is Rahman, tomorrow it will be someone else. And one day it will be you.
