Mumbai: A 2020 poem, featuring Manoj Bajpayee as the narrator, has struck a chord on social media with its message of communal harmony, and filmmaker Milap Zaveri, who had conceptualised it, says it is great to see poem's message reach the people in the current times. Titled "Bhagwan Aur Khuda", the two minute long poem addresses the ineffectiveness of conflict between religions as Bajpayee says, "Bhagwaan aur Khuda aapas mein baat kar rahe thhe Mandir aur Masjid ke beech chauraahe par mulaqaat kar rahe thhe, ki haath jode huye ho ya dua me uthe, koi farak nhi padta hai. (Bhagwaan and Khuda met each other at a square between a temple and a mosque, whether you fold your hands or open your palms for prayer, it really doesn't matter)."
Zaveri had originally put out the video back in May 2020 at the height of coronavirus-induced lockdown in India. But at the time when communal incidents have been reported in states like Madhya Pradesh, Guajarat and national capital New Delhi, the poem is once again finding resonance among the social media users, who are praising its message of peace and harmony. According to Zaveri, the video has resurfaced again due to some "unfortunate incidents" and that's why even he shared it on his Twitter handle. "It is great to see it (poem) becoming so relevant (again). There have been unfortunate incidents where people of two communities have clashed and that has made this video relevant, the filmmaker told PTI. And people came out to say that people from neither community want disharmony or discord amongst each other. Hindus and Muslims have lived in peace and that is what's the message that the poem tries to give, he added.