Political parties, films, sports, the media, corporate houses and even religious establishments celebrate nationalism as the prime marker of India’s collective identity. Even his prostitute sisters become so annoyed that they eventually disown him. He emphatically asserts: “I have read somewhere that during the French Revolution the first bullet had hit a prostitute... Thaila, that is Mohammad Tufail, was the son of a prostitute. The narrator tells the listener that amidst this atmosphere of mourning, Thaila’s sisters are called to perform a mujra to entertain British officials. For him, Thaila’s sacrifice was meant to revolutionise the ethical universe of his prostitute sisters; yet they remained trapped in their immediate circumstances.

Source: The Telegraph March 11, 2026 08:51 UTC