Discriminations...............

Before I get into the actual topic...allow me to say something about myself.Most of my close friends know this.So if you are among them...you can skip this part...but I recommend that you read it...'coz then you'll get an idea about what I'm talking about.


My full name is Rizwi Hossain Khondekar...or rather Khondekar Rizwi Hossain...it doesnt really matter.I'm a Muslim...and I wont lie to you...I know very little about my own religion...this is not exactly something to be proud of....rather...it's scary...But if u were to see the environment I was brought up in...it wud fit in.My father's name is Khondekar Mohammed Hasnat...and my mother's name is Manika Ghosh...yes..she's a Hindu.


If I really probe deeper...I see that the only thing I inherited from my dad was my religion...and his surname...I'm not as hardworking as he is...neither am I that cool.On the other hand...My mom had the greater impact on me...It wud not be an exaggeration if I say that I was brought up as a Hindu...and not as a Muslim.I had never been to a mosque till about a year back...while I had travelled to temples all over Kolkata and Puri even when I was a child...even now when I'm in some kinda trouble...which is frequent...I call upon Bhagobaan...and not Allah.

I have pictures and idols of all the Hindu Gods and Goddesses in my room...I fast on Maha-astomi during the Durga Pujas...I dance at Vijaya Dashami...Most of my cousins are Hindus....and I seem to bond with my Hindu friends better than the Muslim ones....


My mom and dad sacrificed a lot...nobody accepted a Muslim man(no matter how educated he was) marrying a Kshatriya Hindu woman just like that...they had to face a lot of difficulties...though eventually both families accepted it later...as they say..."the wounds healed but the scars remained"..................


I didnt have to stay at the ghettos most minorities confine themselves to...we stayed...or rather...we stay..at more or less...a good locality.But I will never forget the statement a landlord made..."Apnara to Musalmaan...bujhtei parchen...apnader ghar bhara dewa jabe na"...I was in class 4 at that time...and though I didnt understand the whole fuss about being a Musalmaan...I thought that we were something else...unlike most of the people with whom we interact.

When I was very young...I didnt particularly feel discriminated against...but that feeling wasnt to last long...When I was in class 6...most of my class friends were invited to the Sacred Thread Ceremony of one of my very very close friend...but I was the only one out...As I heard it later....even though my friend wanted to invite me...his parents were dead opposed to the idea of inviting a musalmaan boy to the sacred ceremony...lest the God became infuriated...


As I got older...the discrimination became more evident...even if a boy was dying out of thirst...he wudn't normally accept water from me...let alone sharing my tiffin...it so happened that I didnt carry my tiffins to school class 9 onwards...out of shame...and though my mom pleaded with me to tell her the reason...I declined...I didnt want to hurt my mom............

My first love...yes...that was soon to follow...I loved her so dearly...I really did...I was in class 7 or 8...I'm not sure...She was this lovely Punjabi gal from my locality...We chatted every evening...but it came to a sudden stop...reason??...her parents thought that it wasnt a good idea to let their precious daughter talk to a Muslim boy...No matter how young he is...but he still carries the Muslim blood in his veins.....................................................


It so happened that at this point of time...one of my friends got close to a muslim gal...I didnt know that gal ofcourse...but my friends made fun of this guy about having a muslim girlfriend...This friend told them..."Why...since you can be friends with Rizwi..who's a muslim...what's wrong in having a muslim girlfriend?"....I salute u...Puspen!


I'm in college...and the discrimination is evident here...Being a minority here as well...most of my classmates look at me with suspicions in their eyes...and what they cannot really understand is that..."How on earth can someone be a Bengali...and a Muslim..at the same time?"..........


I dunno if stuff like dese happen to every muslim lad like me......


I'm sure...I'll be discriminated against the rest of my life...but that's a challenge...u see...my father beat everything to become the man he is today...and I'm gonna follow in his footsteps.