MALAYALAM writer Paul Zacharia has over the years been in the spotlight as much for his literary offerings asfor the controversy his work inevitably attracts. Most of his themes tend to be provocative and appear subversive to Christian orthodoxy. So much so that his critics accuse him of orchestrating controversies in connivance with friends in the media to create hype for his books. His latest short story on a pre-messianic Jesus Christ too has sparked off a heated, albeit shortlived, debate on the artist's prerogative versus religious orthodoxy.
The story, titled Kannadi Kanmolavum, which appeared in a Malayalam journal last month, drew angry protests from a Catholic bishop and a couple of lay organisations. At the centre of the uproar is the portrayal of Christ as an unwashed wanderer in a sandy wilderness, lacking in elementary hygiene, his beard and hair caked in dust and sweat, a repelling odour emanating from his armpits and loins. Jesus as a young man wrestles with the temporal dilemma of whether to get rid of his lice-infested beard or not.
Bishop Seesapakiam of the Latin Catholic diocese in Thiruvananthapuram denounced the story on the grounds that it denigrated Christ and hurt the sentiments of the Christian community. "The writer has crucified Jesus again," the bish-op said, describing the story as the product of a perverted mind.
The bishop sought to mobilise opinion among other church leaders, but the Bishops Council, representing the various Christian denominations, which met in Kochi recently, opted for tactical reasons to ignore the story for the time being. The bishops resolved to release an official response in the event of the controversy escalating out of proportion. As it turned out, the furore subsided as abruptly as it began. The church's stratagem of silence helped contain and finally extinguish the controversy.
Meanwhile, Zacharia, in a pre-emptive move, sought to put his story in perspective for the public. He issued a statement refuting the charge that he had denigrated Christ and said he was deeply influenced by his teachings.
Zacharia traces the inspiration for his story to Luis Bunuel's film Milky Way which depicts Christ toying with the idea of shaving off his beard. Zacharia develops this into the central theme of his story where Christ is terrorised at the prospect of confronting his temporal visage in a barber's mirror and flees to find solace in the lap of his childhood friend Mariam.
This is not the first time that thechurch establishment in Kerala has had to contend with unflattering portrayalsof Jesus Christ. In a messy controversy that erupted nearly a decade ago, churchleaders cracked down on playwright P.M. Antony for his treatment of Christ. Thebishops’ campaign led to official action and the eventual banning of the play.Antony struggled against the forces of church and state but suffered a setbackwhen he was jailed for life for complicity in a murder case, a charge that hedescribed as a frame-up. Last year he won a reprieve and was released.
Zacharia acknowledges that he is betteroff than the hapless Antony. "I am protected by my middle-classcontext," he claims. "I have a job and financial security, whichAntony did not." Of course, there is also the fact that the controversycould help Zacharia boost the sales of his books. But he will no doubt heave asigh of relief that the uproar has subsided. At least for now.
