midnight's child

we went to watch Salman Rushdie in college today, as part of his lecture tour. he was witty, he was eloquent.. he was open, he was forthright. he was awesome, really. and he brought to the fore all the prejudices we have about people. i have only read 'Midnight's Children' from all his works.. and i went in today expecting to hear a vitriolic speaker defending his stand, a repressed writer trying to break free, an angry old man heaping scorn on his tormentors.. and he was nothing like that!

this rushdie is a smart guy, he dresses well.. he's a smart guy, he thinks long and hard.. he's a smart guy, he pulls his legions of hot women by being downright funny. he can be a riot! he read pieces from his books that had laughter echoing in the rafters, and he regaled us with even funnier anecdotes that had people chuckling long after they came home and sat down to their dinners.

he spoke very frankly about the whole controversy about 'Satanic Verses', about his upbringing in the cultural melting pot that newly-independent india was, his college days in a not-so-swanky chelsea apartment, his love for the amalgam of languages in modern society. he has a gift for describing people.. we felt his stories come alive, as if we were there!

rushdie is recognised as a free-thinker in modern society, and with that comes the regular labels of 'anti-establishment' and 'rebel'.. but listening to him one felt.. "why not?". after all, you will never get your voice heard if you stick to the straight and narrow! and most times when people have something of worth to say, it is because they are pushing away barriers, exploring the territories off the beaten path.

the whole event was perfectly managed.. he came in, charmed the crowd with his wit.. passed his message of free speech and writing as an art, nicely cloaked in humour.. didn't play for the audience's sympathy regarding the 'fatwa' decree that was on his head.. and in fact made quite a few jokes about it.. very significantly: "the Ayatollah put out a deathwish on me.. look who's alive today?! i guess the pen really IS mightier than the sword!" my one issue with it all was that same issue i have with all shows/concerts/performances.. that they look a little orchestrated, and a little artificial.. but i guess that's how we get to see them.. what are the odds Metallica would play in our backyard the next time we barbecue, and i'd meet Salman Rushdie at the local pub and he'd buy me a pint and we'd discuss foreign policy?!

to close, he quoted a line from one of his favourite authors, Saul Bellow: "open up the universe a bit" in reference to art, and the role it has played in the past, and continues to play.. against the forces that fear free thought, and push back the same boundaries that art tries to push out. a lot of food for thought there.