Seldom Black or white

Black has warmed many Indian hearts in London, writes Nabanita Sircar.

After a brief spell of an early Spring which brought out the bees and flowers, we are now covered with a white blanket of snow, threatened with the prospect of the Arctic freeze continuing through the next week. But it is that has warmed many Indian hearts here. It was after a long time that I enjoyed a film, sans all the typical Bollywood frills of a "song and a dance", yet one that has lingered in the subconscious realms of the mind.

The film not only typifies the intensity of its director Sanjay Leela Bhansali but brings out the acting talents of the actors Rani Mukherjee, Amitabh Bachchan and not forgetting the young Ayesha Kapoor.

A far cry from the typical Bollywood extravaganza like Bride and Prejudice, or even the musical Bombay Dreams, which have set a pattern of Indian films in British minds, as being colourful and bright without much depth, I sincerely feel Black, is a film that deserves to be marketed much better in Britain.

As a cinema-going friend noted, "Its a very NRI film." Not simply that, mainstream British audiences should be given the chance to taste quality Indian films. Rather than being relegated to cinemas in areas with high Asian population, Black should reach cinemas in the Westend. Some of my white British friends who saw the film, on my recommendation, enjoyed it. With a film that has such universal appeal, it would be nice if Bhansali marketed the film better in the West. After all, who does not enjoy a good film!

Religion and ethnicity are such sensitive issues here that mentioning either are like walking on the razor's edge. Later this week a series of books on the resources of Hinduism is to be launched, covering GCSE and Advanced level course material. With the Hindu Council of Britain, behind this launch, claiming most of the resources on Hinduism, so far, have been distorted Abrahamic versions of Hinduism, and the new series will represent a Hindu version of Hinduism focusing on its core teachings of divinity of man, religious pluralism, religion reconciled with rationality and findings of modern science, we hope it will be a correct and objective account, not cloured by any particular political or religious leaning.

While everyone here is running scared of the dreaded Sudan1 dye in the chilli that came from India in September 2002, Indian food lovers can find some solace. Sir Gulam K. Noon, who is often dubbed as Curry King for the over-300,000 readymade meals his state-of-art Noon Products supplies across Britain each day, allayed fears about the dye in Indian dishes.

He says Sudan 1 does not affect Indian restaurants and readymade Indian meals. True. No Indian food item has been named as one of the tainted products. He says, "I am not suggesting that one should not worry about Sudan 1, but nevertheless it has all been blown out of proportion.

"A person has to eat half a kilo of chilli a day for him to fear cancer. Who does or can eat that much of chilli." Well, we can definitely trust the man who knows his food!

One sad news, though, is that of the polo accident of the Crown Prince of Jodhpur, Shivraj Singh. A regular visitor to London and spotted regularly at night clubs here, the friendly 29-year-old who has been described by columnist Richard Kay as "one of the world's most dashing Etonian bachelors" and the "only boy at £22,000-a-year Eton College who was allowed to wear a diamond earring" is now in a state of coma. I have met him quite often in London, and he definitely came across as a charming and soft-spoken young man. May he have a swift recovery, is what I hope.

Basere se dur, life is seldom Black or white!