Bineesh Bastin, Anil Radhakrishna ‘Menon’ and the art of ‘name and shame’
If Malayalam is a palindrome, being Malayali is an oxymoron.
Malayalis contradict themselves more often than they realise, and it is more than evident in the flare-up that erupted between upcoming actor Bineesh Bastin and director Anil Radhakrishna Menon. One day, they are with Bineesh, the next day with Anil, and the third, they are all on their way to the next ‘targets.’
While the official film body has now stepped forward and ‘compromised’ the issue, it is not hard to fathom that the embers of hate sown by the incident will not dissipate any time soon.
And, not surprisingly if you know Malayalis well enough, it all stems from hearsay.
Reportedly, Anil told the college authorities, who invited him and Bastin, for their annual day that ‘he won’t share the dais’ with Bastin. That much would have to be true. Anil would have had his reasons — and we are none to challenge him. Each to one’s own — although that never figures in a Malayali’s lexicon.
And then all hell broke loose: Bastin storms onto the stage, sits on the ground, makes an emotional plea of ‘it being the most hurtful day in his life’ and goes on to win the hearts and minds of social media users.
All for what? With no conclusive proof other than hearsay, Bastin concludes that Anil made a casteist remark against him. With a modicum of truth, perhaps, Bastin contends that Anil has no right to say he won’t share the stage with him just because he had approached the director for roles.
The big questions remain and only Anil would know the answers: Did he use a casteist reference? Was his request not to share the stage based on ‘class divide’ as FEFKA pointed out? Did he really mean to offend? Or was it just a man’s liberty to choose his platform — as he deemed it fit?
While Anil apologised, Bastin appears non-forgiving. He has called for Anil to say sorry to the public (for his purported casteist referencing) and has categorically stated he will not work with Anil ever again. Riding the wave of controversy, Bastin also bagged a few film roles, while he continues to play the ‘downtrodden’ card.
Now, for a minute, what if Anil Radhakrishna Menon wasn’t a Menon? What if it was Mammootty and if he had said he won’t share the dais with Bastin, because he was a struggling actor, would such hell have broken out?
First, with Mammootty, the college union would not have dared to bring another upcoming star — not the least the less-known Bastin — in the presence of Mammootty. So where did the ‘class-divide’ really begin?
Wasn’t it the college union, a bunch of students who apparently are so carried away with stardom and the like, and who through their decision to invite Bastin without the knowledge of Anil, belittling the director in the first place? Didn’t they deem Anil not big enough that they needed some extra punch on the side?
And weren’t the same people who relayed, perhaps, distorted messages that were said in private conversation to the actor to stir the pot?
One can easily imagine a loose tongue among the students who would have hoped to gain a few brownie points from Bastin by bashing Anil. The immaturity of these students has led to what is arguably one of the most unneeded debates in Kerala that brings us back to the ask again: are Malayalis really oxymorons? Do they contradict themselves for petty interests?
Well, let us set aside the ‘Menon’, high-caste drama for now and concentrate on just a few below:
· Malayalis pride in not being hero-worshippers, especially of actors, and yet behave worse than the most rotten of fans when it comes to their idols (the locust fans of Mohanlal, for example)
· Malayalis are said to be politically highly informed and yet when it comes to party affiliations, they hardly dare to condemn one’s even it the face of their party’s worst violations
· Malayalis despise ‘sensationalism’ and condemn the aggression of media yet flock to read Marunadan Malayali that thrives on titillation (in the name of truth)
· Malayalis say they hate serials yet patronize them with flourish
· Malayalis say they pride in their secular values but when it comes to own religions, they find no faults in Christian, Muslim, Ezhava, Nair groupings
· Malayalis say they respect age and talent, but they are the first ones to use the choicest of bad words to taunt anyone from Yesudas to Adoor Gopalakrishnan
The list can go on but it all boils down to one simple fact: Being a Malayali, they believe, is a licence to ‘call out’, to name and shame anyone and anything, to be as disrespectful and irreverent as one can be, to be absolutely theatrical (like Bastin) for the wrong reasons, and to croon before power (be it any one — an RJ, a vlogger or an actor) and yet feign themselves to be superior, detached, know-it-all and morally impeccable.
That is the typical Malayali — a bundle of contradictions that also makes them such an exciting people to know and (try to) understand.
