FATHER FIGURE: Mohammed Ali Jinnah

The Count’s tryst with Pakistan

Now, it’s the turn of the great British actor Christopher Lee to say nice things about Mohammed Ali Jinnah.

Christopher Lee had better watch it or the Sangh parivar will be after him, too, and ask him to resign as, well, Christopher Lee.

But the Sangh should also beware: Lee, 6ft 5in tall, is quite capable of sinking his fangs into his victims (as he used to do so effectively as Count Dracula).

For one thing, Lee is knowledgeable about Jinnah because he carefully researched the history and character of the founder of Pakistan before taking on the lead role in the 1998 film, Jinnah.

Last week at a function in London, Lee was asked for his opinion of Jinnah.

“Jinnah talks about Pakistan being a modern, secular state,” responded Lee, who listened to recordings of Jinnah’s speeches when preparing for the role. “He talks about Pakistan being for the Hindus, they are free to worship in their temples. Pakistan is for the Christians, they are free to worship in their churches. Pakistan is for people from all minorities regardless of their religion. Jinnah talks about matters of state and religion being separate.”

The implication is that if Jinnah’s dream has not been realised by his successors, it’s not his fault.

Having seen the film Jinnah, I can say that, cinematically, it is nowhere as good as Attenborough’s Gandhi, which it was meant to match. Nevertheless, it is a worthy film which should get a release in India. In Britain, distributors never took it on because they felt it would not make money.

Though Lee, now aged 83, will always be remembered as Count Dracula, today’s young generation will associate him with the character of Count Dooku, who comes to a sticky end in the latest Star Wars movie, Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith.

Lee acknowledges that the Star War films are his most successful. “But the most important film I’ve ever done in terms of the story, the challenge to me as an actor and the responsibility I had, was when I went to Pakistan to play the founder of Pakistan, who is just as famous and just as revered as Gandhi is in India and his name was Jinnah.”

Lee adds: “This is a film that has to be seen all over the world.”

The DVD was recently released in the UK. Perhaps copies will be made available in India, courtesy of the pirates of Karachi who are normally busy making fake copies of Bollywood movies.

ROLL OF HONOUR: Mimi Romilly (left) with Christopher Lee

Camden calls

The function Christopher Lee was inaugurating is called ‘Notable Asians in Camden’.

Camden is an important north-London borough, which has been home to prominent Asians over the decades because of the proximity to the Inns of Court, London University and the City.

Now, Mimi Romilly, a Camden historian, has compiled a list of 18 notable Indians and Pakistanis with connections to the borough. She has included Mohammed Ali Jinnah and Rabindranath Tagore, both of whom had houses in Hampstead.

Also on the list are Mahatma Gandhi, Krishna Menon, Dr Ambedkar, Syed Amin Ali (“a Bengali judge who helped start the Red Crescent”), Noor Inayat Khan (“a British spy shot by the Germans”), the actress Merle Oberon (“she was half Indian”), Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Dadabhai Naoroji, Jawaharlal Nehru, Satyajit Ray, Ravi and Uday Shankar, Maharajah Duleep Singh, Chunnilal Katial (“the first Asian mayor”) and Cornelia Sorabji.

Last but also first is Ali Mohammed Abbas, who merits a plaque erected by Camden Council at 33, Tavistock Square, with the inscription, “Ali Mohammed Abbas, 1922-1979, barrister and one of the founders of Pakistan, lived here, 1945-1979”.

“He was my father,” reveals Mimi. “I have been brought up in an English way but I am half Asian. My mother, Irene Romilly, was English.”

HAPPY HOUR: The Kingfisher ad on a Soho rickshaw

Fizz quotient

A battle is in prospect between Karan Billimoria’s Cobra Beer and Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher Lager. In the last few days, it has not been possible to move in London without coming across giant Bollywood style posters for Mallya’s Kingfisher Lager ? even rickshaws in Soho are carrying ads for “India’s No 1 lager”.

Not being a beer drinker, I can’t comment on the beers. But I do like the Kingfisher ad which reflects continuing Bollywoodisation of Britain.

I am happy to say this includes the arrival of Parineeta, which is being screened in Leicester Square at West End Vue (which was previously known as Warner Village Cinemas).

The film answers the question, “Can a Bengali film be made in Hindi?” The answer is yes. There were fewer than 20 people in the theatre one night last week but mainstream cinema owners realise there is money from putting on popular films from India. Tickets cost ?10 ? over Rs 800.

Curry culture

There are many books in the market today about Indian curry but here is a new one with a difference: Curry Culture: A Very British Love Affair. It has been compiled by the husband-and-wife team of Peter and Colleen Grove, who bring out the Real Curry Restaurant Guide.

In the book, they deal with the rapid expansion of the Indian food industry in Britain. But it began, not 20 years ago with the introduction of something called chicken tikka masala, but with Dean Mahomet. He was a Bengali, born in Bihar in 1759, and is called “the first man of curry”.

In 1809, Mahomet opened The Hindustanee Coffee House in London just off Portman Square near where Selfridges is located today. The first curry house in Britain closed in 1812. As the Groves say, Mahomet was “very much a man before his time”.

The book contains useful answers to questions such as: Do visits to Indian restaurants usually end up in the bathroom?

The answer is: No ? and they certainly shouldn’t.

Even in the Gavaskar era, the English would undermine touring Indian cricket teams by putting up rude signs at Test matches, “It takes more than curry to give you runs.”

Tittle tattle

Indian shopkeepers in Britain have something of a reputation for not withdrawing out-of-date items from their shelves. It’s nothing too outrageous. You might find that a packet of sausages bought on June 4, for example, might have a “Sell by June 3” date. But who looks at the fine print?

I had a first of sorts last week when I bought a copy of the Evening Standard for 40p because I needed change from a ?10 note to park the car. Since I was early for my appointment, I started reading the front page of the paper.

The reason why it looked familiar was because I was holding a paper which I had read before. The Indian shopkeeper was getting rid of unsold copies of the previous day’s Evening Standard. I have heard of bashi food before, but never bashi news. If a journalist could be taken in so easily, what hope was there for the rest of the population?

No wonder the newsagents’ trade in London and large swathes of urban England are firmly in the grip of Indians.