Are you a Muslims?

Children are fun packages, full of energy, enthusiasm and curiosity. Every child I encounter is always a different composition altogether. Recently, I was part of a children's literature festival in Bengaluru. The venue was a place known as Makkala-Koota. Makkala in Kannada means children and Koota means a group.

It was a park with swings and slides and ample open space where children could run as they want! Several tall, white tents were raised which looked just like the ones in the circus. On one side of these tents were book stalls which had hundreds of children's books and on another side was the main venue for the function.

It was 10 o' clock in the morning. Soon the space got filled completely by children of different age groups. Happy faces all around. No other exquisite landscape in the world could probably match the beauty of this scene.

(Photo courtesy - Gajula Praveen Kumar Naidu of APF)

With great efforts, I found my way to the front through the crowd of children. Some of us, the volunteers, were trying to accommodate the overflow of the children coming in. But, our attempts to make them sit in systematic rows were futile; for obvious reasons. After all, they were not in their schools today! Eventually, we left this hopeless business.

The atmosphere was fully charged. There were more than 600 children talking to each other and the buzz was growing louder. A bunch of happy faces, aged 11-12, sitting close by waved at me.

Sir!!

I waved back, and sat by them. They were elated, smiling ear to ear. So was I!

"En hessaru nivu?" - I asked their names in my broken Kannada.

It must have sounded funny, definitely. They laughed in amusement and told me their names one after the other.

"Nan hessaru Aakash" - I said.

They giggled! Some girls sitting close-by were also listening to our conversation. I looked at them and smiled. I was about to ask them if they were enjoying the festival and at that moment, one of the boys asked me something - something that shook me for a while-

"Are you a Muslims?"

I couldn't believe what I heard. I was puzzled as I was not expecting a question about my religion. Why such a random question, out of nowhere? But something more was yet to come. Looking at my perplexed face, another boy asked me -

"Your God? Durga? Aan? Durga?", he tried explaining me with the action of Trishul.

I had no clue what to say. Why would that even be asked? that too, to a stranger like me? or, to anybody, for that matter? by a little kid of 6th or 7th standard? or wait - by anybody out there? Why would anybody ask this? I was perplexed.

Was is just a simple question and am I making unnecessary fuss about it? Or there was something much more to it that I am  unable to read?

I remember. That day I wore a black short kurta with golden embroidery on it. I had grown my hair. Had it something to do with this, my attire, my appearance? Were these children associating 'a' particular imagery with a community or a religion?

Probably yes. Or not, may be! It could just be a 'normal' practice in their households - to ask someone about his/her religion. What if 'it' was in their schools? These were increasingly disturbing thoughts.

If we, as a society, are encouraging any 'stereotyping' - knowingly or unknowingly, it is a grave problem. Religion, ethnicity, region, caste, rich-poor, tribal-urban, politician-Aam aadmi, girl-boy, gender-sexuality, so on and so forth..Our children are immersed into stereotypes of each of these since their very young age. Isn't it?