‘Women will continue to conquer the streets’: Kerala Muslim woman’s FB post goes viral

Shamna wrote about the blowback she got for performing a street play, and expressed solidarity with the women who are facing flak for dancing in a flash mob.

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Fundamentalists are on a warpath on the internet in Kerala, because apparently, watching three young Muslim women dance to Jimikki Kammal – for a good cause might we add – is giving them sleepless nights. The custodians of Muslim culture cannot digest the fact that these women chose to do something they enjoyed, and have been constantly telling them they’re going to hell for the flash mob, and even that the end of the world was here!

In the face of this attack, the young women have found support from some quarters – and among them is a fellow Muslim woman, Shamna Kolakkodan. Taking to Facebook, Shamna, who is an activist and was a street theatre artiste back in college, recalled an incident that happened two years ago: She had staged a street play on a friendship between a boy and a girl, and the crowds gathered there just couldn’t stomach the fact that young women and girls were out on the street acting – especially those wearing a Hijab.

"I don't see any difference between the people who spoke against us two years ago, and the people who are now talking ill against the three Muslim girls who performed the flash mob. How beautifully they have danced! And if they will go to hell because of this, let them!" Shamna wrote in her Facebook post, which has now gone viral.

In the Facebook post Shamna criticised the people, who wished the girls were tied down at their homes, asking why they were not the wishing the same for people who are accused of corruption, murder, rape and other anti-social activities.

Shamna also recalled the lewd comments that were passed by the crowd, with many hitting out at them for their ‘loose lifestyle.’ She also expressed regret for not reacting to the horrible comments that were spewed at them.

Taking a dig at religious fundamentalists who said that the Muslim girls will definitely end up in hell for their act, Shamna wrote:

"In all the years that you have been busy trying to send Muslim women to heaven, you deliberately forgot one thing. You forgot about drunkards, sexual offenders, people who resort to violence and those who do not take care of their parents in their old age. What is the logic in ignoring such things and saying that women who get out of their homes and dance will go to hell? Just imagine, the dreams of those girls that you have crushed with your words. The girls who you said will land up in hell are the girls who are tomorrow's future. "

Her Facebook post also urged all the girls and women to continue dancing, singing and tasting freedom in life the way they want to.

Shamna is not the first one to take to social media to react to the flash mob video of the three Muslim girls which went viral. RJ Sooraj took to social media and put out a video of him congratulating the three Malayali girls. Much to people’s disappointment, the video was deleted as the outbursts against him and the radio station surfaced. Instead, Sooraj put out an apology video asking people to stop the hate campaign against him.

The video of the three Muslim girls soon garnered thousands of shares and comments, before it was deleted. Many comments condemned the girls and their families, while others lamented that such people were a ‘curse to the religion.’ The girls were staging a flash mob as part of the district health department's campaign to commemorate World AIDS Day on December 1.