Aligarh / Banaras , PRAYAGRAJ (formerly UTTAR PRADESH) :

Film Director, Producer and Writer, Anubhav Sinha, who has won numerous awards, has made some interesting remarks about the diversity he saw at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and how riots are used to paint Indian Muslims in a particular colour.

Aligarh Muslim University, Anubhav Sinha (Inset)

Film Director, Producer and Writer, Anubhav Sinha, who has won numerous awards, has made some interesting remarks about the diversity he saw at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and how riots are used to paint Indian Muslims in a particular colour.

AMU’s Diverse Culture

Speaking to journalist Saurabh Dwivedi for his YouTube show “The Lallantop”, Anubhav Sinha, who hails from Banaras, now Prayagraj, said he was introduced to the rich Indian diversity for the first time at the Aligarh Muslim University.

“I started believing in the Indian diversity only after I went to Aligarh Muslim University. Before that I was not even aware what diversity actually is”, the maker of Shah Rukh Khan starrer “Ra One”, said.

“Not Muslims alone. At AMU, there were friends from different places of the country. Some were from Hyderabad. Some others were Bengalis from Kolkata. Their Hindi accent was different. They had varying food habits and lifestyle.

“All these things were very interesting and helped me in understanding the diversity of our country… Something that I was unfamiliar with while in Banaras where we had encounters only with local people”, Sinha, who graduated from the AMU in 1987, said.

“This is why I am so powerful an advocate of Indian diversity… India is great because of its diversity”, Sinha, known for award winning films Article 15, Thappad, Mulk, Bheed and Tum Bin, said.

Communal Riots

During the conversation with Saurabh Dwivedi, Anubhav Sinha also highlighted how the communal riots were used to demonize the Indian Muslims.

Recalling the atmosphere in his house after he cleared AMU Entrance Test and got admission Anubhav Sinha said everyone was in shock.

“There used to be frequent communal riots in Uttar Pradesh, including in Aligarh. So my family was worried”, Sinha said.

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“We have always been made to believe that Hindus would never do any mischief… Muslims would always be the real culprits and perpetrators… This is why everyone was worried of my safety”, he said.

“But at Aligarh Muslim University, I reinvented India and got introduced to its powerful diversity”, he said about the university founded by great reformer Sir Syed Ahmed Khan.

source: http://www.ummid.com / Ummid.com / Home> India / by Web Desk / February 19th, 2025