Muslims Not Allowed

Cosmopolitan Bollywood is finally baring its communal fangs. After Saif Ali Khan and Shabana Azmi-Javed Akhtar, several actors and film folk have come forward to express disdain over property segregration in Mumbai.
A leading actor, on condition of anonymity, says, "The entire JVPD (Juhu Vile-Parle Development) Scheme where the who’s who of Bollywood including Anil Kapoor, the Deols, Shatrughan Sinha and Yash Chopra reside, is not open to Muslims. I know, because I’ve tried getting property there. I was turned away. Isn’t it ironical that a locality housing film folk who scream themselves hoarse over secularism, is actually a hotbed of bigotry?"
Arshad Warsi says, "It was very frustrating. I can’t buy residential or office space anywhere in and around Juhu, or in any part of Mumbai. The JVPD Scheme where the cream of Bollywood lives, is closed to Muslims. I had negotiated and almost closed the deal for property in Juhu when the builders got to know I was Muslim.
They refused. Then I tried to buy property in my wife Maria’s name. Even that didn’t materialise. Now I’ve no choice but to live with my wife and children in a rented place and to work out of a rented office. Could this be happening in so-called metropolitan Mumbai? I feel we are regressing in such matters," Arshad is aghast.
Apparently, Sanjay Khan has also been a victim of real-estate discrimination. When he tried to buy property recently in a predominantly Hindu building, he was told he’d be allowed residence only if he agreed to not cook or serve non-vegetarian food in his home.
Sanjay Khan’s son Zayed refuses to comment on the property prejudice but confirms that his father has indeed been a victim of discrimination. "I personally haven’t had much of a chance to feel discriminated against. That could be because we’re not an in-your-face Muslim family. My mother is a Parsi. I’m married to a Hindu and so is my sister Sussanne. We’re quite an assorted bunch."
However Zayed admits he encounters discrimination at his workplace, on location and in sets in unexpected ways. "You have people unnecessarily screaming Jai Mata Di or greeting you with an Assalaam Wale Qum for no reason except to induce a community feeling in a crowd. For me, my religion is a very personal thing. There’s no need to flaunt it."