Introduction

Pakistan is the obverse side of India. It is the second side of the coin. If India was heads Pakistan would be tails. Both countries are of the same racial stock and have by and large have the same ethos and culture but over the decades Pakistan which was conceived as a homeland for Muslims of the sub-continent has degenerated into a nation where obscurantism and blind religious belief is the byword. The dream of the founder of Pakistan Mohammad Ali Jinnah is in a way consigned to the flames. As things stand now, Pakistan Is represented by the Mullah and the gun. The Mullah represent Islamic obscurantism while the gun represents the Army. All social and political acts take place within the Ambit of these two parameters. The Pakistan film Censor Board is one entity which again works within these parameters.

Film censor board

  The degeneration of everyday life in Pakistan has now come to the fore with the banning of the film "Padman" by the Pakistan Film Censor Board. The film has been banned on the ground that it violates the principles of Islam. In other words, the  Censor Board has come out with the statement that the film is against "Islamic values". Nobody has specified what those Islamic values are but the result is that an excellent movie concerning hygiene and sanitation of women has been banned.

As I have already written Pakistan is similar to India in culture and ethos. The fact remains that women in Pakistan, like in India, to the tune of 80% in the rural area rarely used sanitary pads. This fact cannot be brushed under the carpet. It has nothing to do with Islamic values, yet a film on this subject has been banned in Pakistan on the ground that it is against Islamic values. If the matter was not that serious one would die laughing on the bed of nails but people in Pakistan must ask a question as to why the film is banned.

The  film

"Padman" stars Akshay Kumar and the film is doing very good business in India. Even abroad people have appreciated the film for highlighting social ills in society on the Indian subcontinent. Women and men in India needed education on a matter which is of great importance. The film is based on a true-life story of a man in Coimbatore, who conceived of an idea of cheap sanitary pads and started manufacturing them. Akshay Kumar has done a wonderful role and deserves credit for it. He is one star who has attacked the social mores on the Indian subcontinent, like lack of toilet facilities in the film " toilet" with elan and fervor. I cannot think of the three Khans making such a film

 Many in Pakistan are now even calling for a ban on the film Padmavat on the grounds that it portrays Muslims in poor light as the character as portrayed  on the screen by Ranveer Singh of the Sultan Alauddin is not to the liking of Muslims, So much so, that in a relatively free country like Malaysia, the film Padmavat has been banned

Mulla lobby

The banning of the film pad man in Pakistan is a matter of regret and shows that Pakistan is indeed part of the axis of Evil. This was the term used by Ronald Regan. One wonders how far such acts will go on. Looks like the obscure Mullah lobby is dominating the scene. Poor Jinnah will be turning in his grave.

A point to ponder is that the film has been released in other Muslim nations like the UAE. Are they less devout than Pak Muslims? Pak must look inwards and exorcise the ghost of backwardness, mullah, and obscurantism