If there is anything for which Salim Khan is distinguished other than as an ace writer in Hindi cinema, it is for being a die-hard secularist. For decades now, the iconic storyteller has been holding the Ganesh Festival in his home. The Khan family also celebrates Holi, Dusshera, Diwali, Eid and Christmas with equal pomp as Indians rather than people belonging to a specific religion.
A very cute yet majestic Ganpati idol is positioned right at the entrance to the Khan living room. Salim-saab, as I call him, tells me that it is holding fort for over 15 years.
We chat up the industry titan on his religious harmony.
Excerpts from the interview:
How did you begin to observe the Ganpati Festival in your home?
The tradition dates back to my father’s times. We are a very broadminded family. In Indore, where my father was the DSP (Deputy Superintendent of Police), we lived in a neighborhood in which my father had built many small houses, and all the tenants were Hindus. We lived in complete harmony where we addressed each other’s needs and even exchanged food. Such was our bond—Hindu mussalman ka masla hi nahin tha. Dosti thi, sab insaan the!
I had assumed that it was only after your marriage to a Hindu.
Nahin, nahin. You see, I have lived all my life amidst Hindus. Even in the police stations and colonies, we celebrated Hindu festivals as everyone from a sipahi to the head constable was a Hindu. So it was not as if we began keeping Ganpati at home only after my marriage. My family had no objection to my marriage (Salma Khan, nee Sushila Charak) either. She had no problem. There was some objection from one of her family members because I was from a different religion.
In those days, we never even thought about such things as religions. In my class, there would hardly be two or three Muslims, and none were my close friends. Today, of the hundred people on our payroll, like my driver and gardener, only three are Muslims! Yes, inter-religious weddings were not favoured, though!
My father-in-law, a dentist, was from the Dogra community. He had investigated my background when the matter of my wedding came about and respected the fact that I came from a good family and was well-educated. He candidly told me that my religion was his only objection. I assured him that even if we had disagreements or fights, my wife and I would certainly not have them because of our religions! We have been wedded now for 60 years!
Did your wife have any reservations at all about the wedding?
My wife had loved the saat phere ritual and had seen her sister as well as cousin follow it. So I myself found a pandit in my locality aur phere lagwa liye.
And what about a nikaah?
We had a nikaah too, which is essentially a ritual that ascertains that you are not marrying under pressure or force.
And how much is religion followed in your house today apart from the festivals?
My wife does puja, and when I am the mood, I too offer namaaz!
How did you both inculcate such values in your children?
Jo maa-baap mein hai to bacchon mein aa hi jaayega! (Smiles)
People who think along your lines are few.
There are hardly any! (Smiles) And why should I think about religion as an issue? My doctor, Dr. Sandeep Chopra, looked after me and literally nurtured me when I was seriously ill recently. Yeh na hote to pataa nahin kya hota! He is a Hindu too.
Didn’t your Muslim relatives have any objections to all this?
(Shakes head) Not at all! They know I am different! They cannot talk on this topic with us if they do have any issue! When I decided to marry, I did not even have to ask anyone in my house. Nobody could ask me, yeh kya kar rahe ho? In that sense, no one could have any control over me if they did have any objection.
And even otherwise, they all know I am different! Like they don’t touch alcohol. I occasionally do!
Any other differences are there?
From Indore until today, we have never had beef. Beef is eaten by most Muslims as it is the cheapest meat! Some even buy it to feed pet dogs. But in the teachings of prophet Mohammed, he has clearly stated that a cow’s milk is a substitute for mother’s milk and it is a mufid (beneficial) cheez. He has stated that cows should not be killed and beef is forbidden. Prophet Mohammed has adopted good things from every religion. Like eating only halaal meat which was adopted from the Jews, who call it kosher. He has postulated that every religion is good and believes in a Supreme Power like we do.
Have you read the Holy Quran?
Yes, but in English, as the original text is in Arabic. I read it only to find if there was any difference in the teachings of Islam and the Quran. And I was very happy that there was no difference. Both have the same dos and don’ts and finally they both state that all religions are the same and that insaniyat was the key.
You recently were a consultant on the 2013 television serial, Mahabharat.
Yes! I am an authority on Mahabharat. I can take a Doctorate in it! The late Manoj Kumar would call me Panditji! When Siddharth Kumar Tewary, who directed the TV serial, Mahabharat (2013), went to Manoj Kumar for research, he sent them to me as he told them that I was the right person!
They offered me Rs. 50,000 per episode. I told them that I would not take money but would advise them on what to keep in the show and what need not be shown. The serial carried only my name as a consultant.
And this had an amusing follow-up. I had once visited Dilip Kumar on Eid and someone there asked me, “Kaun ho aap?”. When I asked him why he wanted to know, he spoke about my part in the serial! I explained that I just had good knowledge of the epic as I had studied it in great detail!
(Begins to sing “Man tadpat Hari Darshan ko aaj” from Baiju Bawra).
