When music composer A.R. Rahman speculated that his lack of offers was probably due to ‘communal’ attitudes, he was brutally trolled. Hew also did not get any support from the film industry, which collectively kept quiet.

But Harsh Mander, peace and communal harmony activist, his “heart broke” for many reasons when he read Rahman’s statement. Rahman made only a gentle statement after eight years of discrimination. “A.R. Rahman is a person who represents I think the gentlest, most dignified kind of persona apart from being a formidable talent, he says in a podcast discussion with Sidharth Bhatia.” He adds, “isn't it sad that a person who composed Ma Tujhe Salaam has to now say, I love my country?”

“I think it reflects a much larger problem of what is happening in our society because this is also a period where there is a kind of epidemic of hate speech,” he says.

“I'm seeing India has normalised levels of hate speech that are terrifying and which can lead us into a situation of mass violence,” he says. “That’s how the Holocaust started, with words first.”

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