Setting it straight
I am writing in relation to the Gulf News special report concerning Dubai’s most wanted (‘Dubai Police hunt most-wanted criminals,’ Gulf News, May 11). The article and the accompanying photographs make reference to four Irish suspects in the 2010 murder of Mahmoud Al Mabhouh. I wish to make clear that, to the best of the embassy’s knowledge, there are no Irish suspects in the case. Three of the four people pictured in the feature and listed as Irish apparently entered the United Arab Emirates on forged Irish passports. It was clearly stated at the time that these were forged documents. The fourth person listed as Irish in the newspaper, Peter Eiffingar, is not known to have travelled to the UAE on real Irish documents or forged ones and is not known to be Irish. These matters have been the subject of detailed investigations in both Ireland and the UAE and there has also ben close cooperation between the authorities in the two countries. It is regrettable that the paper has published incorrect information, which I feel is damaging to the reputation of Ireland in the UAE.
From Mr Ciarán Madden
Ambassador of Ireland to the UAE
Change our ways
We don’t need to change the way a woman looks or dresses but rather, we need to change the way a man thinks (‘Daily Facebook discussion: Do you think the way women are portrayed in Hollywood/Bollywood plays a role in the rising number of sexual crimes in today’s world? Should censor boards get stricter? Do you think cinema culture can bring a change in helping empower women?’ Gulf News, May 11). I believe that everyone is free to wear what they want in India. So don’t blame the dress code or movies for increasing crime in the country. However, I have often noticed that some parents willingly take their children for movies marked for an audience over 18 years of age. I recently went for one of these movies and saw a father asking his little boy after the show, whether he enjoyed it or not. The movie was full of abusive language, drug and alcohol abuse. If parents willingly allow their children to watch such movies, then they can’t blame them for picking up unwanted attributes. I don’t know who is to blame in such situations — the parents or the cinema industry?
From Ms Anupriya Dayal Budhwani
Facebook comment
Cultural issue
I believe that this is a cultural issue. I don’t believe there has been any increase in sexual assaults in the West as a result of movies or music videos. Whether or not too much skin is shown in videos, it has nothing to do with men deciding to rape and abuse women. Is someone suggesting that men in some parts of the world are so stupid and animalistic that they have no choice but to rape people after they watch movies that show skin?
From Mr Abu Haroun
Facebook comment
Censor vulgarity in movies
The word fashion starts from the film industry, because most girls want to look like one actress or another. They want to follow how their favourite actresses act, their body language and the way they dress up. If a popular actress looks good in say, a bikini, many girls would want to follow the trend. If the censor board had some level of restriction over the vulgarity, dressing sense and sexual scenes of movies, such crimes would not be rising in India.
From Mr Azmat Lodhi
Facebook comment
Depict positively
Yes, the cinema industry can have a great impact on crimes, if they show women in vulnerable roles. At the same time, if the movies show women in respectable roles and as a source of inspiration, it will help reduce crimes against women. Bollywood should depict women as sensitive, courageous and powerful.
From Ms Soumya Mohanty Vilekar
Facebook comment
Don’t blame cinema
No, I think it depends on the way children are raised. In India, many children are raised under very ignorant circumstances and witness issues like unemployment around them from their very childhood. Added to this is the huge gap between the rich and the poor in society. Movies have nothing to do with the increase in sexual crimes.
From Mr Nawaf Abu Ghazaléh
Facebook comment
Vulgarity abounds
Bollywood films are vulgar and very suggestive. Many dialogues have double meanings that can be offensive. Let’s not pretend that we all don’t note this. Such movies definitely don’t depict Indian culture truthfully. Hollywood movies also tend to exaggerate, but they don’t try to fit in inappropriate messages in family-oriented movies.
From Ms Sara
Facebook comment
Change the concept
I completely agree that cinema culture has definitely destroyed young minds, and it will continue to do so until there is a change in the way concepts are portrayed. If we look at the history of Bollywood, women were the backbone of the industry rather than a tool to increase sales. Censor boards should definitely be stricter in terms of the language and nudity shown. Cinema culture has no effect whatsoever in empowering women - instead it has a negative impact on the people’s mentality. What we watch and observe is how our thoughts eventually become.
From Ms Sumera Malik
Facebook comment
It’s not the movies
I agree that some movies depict women inappropriately. But, just because you have a knife in the kitchen does not make you a potential killer.
From Ms Vandita Kumar
Facebook comment
Role models
Cinema is only a form of entertainment. It is not a school or a means of teaching. If everyone realises this, the impact that movies have will reduce. Role models should be parents and teachers, not celebrities.
From Ms Pankhuri Singh
Facebook comment
Influencing attitudes
I really think that cinema has a conscious hold in changing the attitude of youths and of those who attempt a crime. Cinema can pave a way to crime, even though it might not have a hand in influencing these people directly. If someone has criminal thoughts, their thoughts may get exaggerated when seeing today’s movies. Cinema is an imaginary world. What they sell are imaginary products.
From Mr Salim Mohammad
Facebook comment
Unfair
In a way, Bollywood is responsible for rising crimes in India. Many Bollywood movies have scenes that expose people to the use of drugs, alcohol, smoking, rape, vulgarity and the list goes on. But I don’t blame the movies; I blame the censor board that allows such scenes to be screened. The filmmakers want to maximise their profits at the cost of increasing sexual crimes. This is not fair.
From Mr Syed J. Huq
Dubai
Website comment
Respectable roles for women
The Indian cinema industry can be blamed for the rise in sex crimes to a large extent (‘Bollywood bears brunt of rising sexual crimes,’ Gulf News, May 11). We often hear actors claiming that they don’t do intimate scenes because they respect women and hold certain family values. However, those same actors are a part of films that abuse and disrespect women. Women should be represented in a more respectable way in Indian movies. India is a country where a large number of the population is uneducated. Women are anyway not given the position and respect they deserve in many households. Movies must focus on roles that empower women, rather than disrespect them. Our actions are based on what we see. When uneducated minds are exposed to abuse, they will more often than not return home and abuse their women. But if the same minds are shown respect towards women, they might actually follow the same.
From A Reader
Dubai
Website comment
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