Abuse Of Biblical Names: A Modest Proposal

Complaints are odious.  But some times they become unavoidable.  For a long time  the present writer has been concerned about the subject to be discussed below, but postponed any public articulation of grievance apprehending that it might be misunderstood or even considered to have sectarian overtones.  However things have reached such a point when no more open protest can be put off.  The Bible and the characters in its various books have inspired great artists, writers, painters and poets to create unforgettable pieces of creative expression.  In Malayalam language the poet Vallathol Narayanamenon penned a magnificent poetic piece called ‘Magdalana Mariyam’ which took the message of her life transformation to generations of readers. With profound understanding and insight into the miraculous change   brought about in Mary’s life, the poet conveyed that episode in the Bible to millions of people who would not have otherwise known about it.  Similarly many novelists, dramatists and poets have sowed the seeds of Biblical messages through their literary creations.  In the new form of art, television serial, there were attempts to portray the life of Jesus Christ and His disciples in many Indian languages.  There have also been films on such themes, which were appreciated by people of all faiths.
From the 50’s onwards complaints were raised about Christian names being used for characters with negative qualities.  For example names such as Lily, Maria etc. were freely given to women of easy virtue and similar male names for murderers, hired killers, drug merchants, smugglers etc.  Criminals are found in every community, but the story writers and directors of films in those decades often found it covenient to indulge in this practise.  Once, when the Bishops questioned the film makers why they did it, the answer was “many criminals who are known to us have such names”. They were oblivious of the thousands and thousands of men and women carrying compassion and succour to those who are in grief, hunger and suffering.  This trend is now raising its poisonous hood in some Malayalam T.V serials.  Special mention is to be made of three serials now appearing in Asianet channel. At 7.00 p.m. every day there is a story called ‘Harichandanam’ wherein a young, villainous girl who employs various stratagems to entrap a famous singer ‘Niranjan’ has the name’ Rose Mary’.  She is shown as scheming, unscrupulous and dishonest every way, struggling to achieve her objective of ensnaring the reputed singer and marrying him by hook or by crook.  Finally she weds him in a Church nuptial ceremony before a priest.  Because of her religion, she is unacceptable to the singer’s father and mother.  The second serial shown at 7.30 p.m called ‘Ammakkili’ has a villain who is the successor of Iago in Shakespeare’s drama ‘Othello’ - vicious, devious, always strategizing the discomfiture of his opponent, practicing evil for evil’s sake.  He turns sister against sister, parents against children, fiancé against her lover.  His ultimate goal is to destroy the business of his friend and take over the assets.  After every one of his exploits, he would even utter ‘Thank God the will of God is accomplished’. He would even give a few quotations from the Bible or sentences from well known prayers.  This evil genius is masked by pretended innocence and goodwill to all.  He has been given the name ‘Koshy’ which is a common Christian name in central Kerala.  At 9.00 p.m. comes the arch schemer ‘Markose’, a mean, self-serving trickster and his wife ‘Mariam’, a clever caricature of a lower middle class Christian family.  All kinds of petty attitudes and comments are attributed to Markose to make him a condemnable character on the periphery of society.
In some of the earlier serials of Asianet the story makers had done some serious research into the Old Testament to locate a very uncommon name ‘Tobias’, a character who was totally evil prone to exploitation, extortion and even murder.  The same serial had other characters such as Gladys and Glory, both negative characters.   Drunkards and goons wearing a chain with a cross pendant is far too common in many films also.  Some of the omniscient Jury members of musical reality shows are also in the habit of passing contemptuous comments on young singers with obvious reference to their caste or creed. In humorous episodes the sermonizing priest is often shown as uttering pious platitudes in a sheepish tone.
The present writer wrote to the Chairman of the Asianet channel two years ago pointing out that this tendency of Christianizing criminality is objectionable.  In reply the channel authorities clarified that these were isolated cases and they had utmost respect for the Churches and the Bible. However during this year, this particular syndrome has surfaced again, may be due to the inter-communal polarization in Kerala society and possibly the assumption that the majority of the viewers would be delighted by such names for undesirable characters.  They are totally wrong since the secular society and the enlightened viewers would never accept or appreciate such an attitude to a particular community. Only expressions of disapproval and protest conveyed to the channel management can correct this situation.  Let us hope that good sense will prevail ultimately.