Dakhni culture is in the spotlight and now a new initiative from Bengaluru is furthering the movement. It is a motion comic series called ‘Hallubol’.
Currently available on Instagram and YouTube, ‘Hallubol’ showcases the language, people, and everyday life of the Muslims of the Deccan region, who inhabit parts of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu. It is created by the couple Rahil Mohsin and Alankrita Amaya, who are animation artists.
The Dakhni universe in the series revolves around Maloom Mamu and Maxi Mumani and their children, relatives, friends and sheep Mendu. Observational humour and daily conversations make up the stories, which are dropped every week or so.
Sample these: Maloom Mamu is a know-it-all. So during the state elections in Karnataka, he urged people to vote (Jaako vote daalo). Together with Farishta Feroz, an autorickshaw driver, and SauCut Shoukat, a butcher, they are ‘3 Idiots’. Mansoor’s wife is always dressed in a maxi and a dupatta and finds joy in gardening.
His younger brother is Sattu, a gym rat. He is seen boasting about his weekly workouts. But hafta itwar (weekends) are rest days, he makes clear. In other comics, we meet Cycle Taaya, an old gent whose genial nature and ittar are loved even by neighbourhood cats, cousins Kulsum and Mubeen, who are ‘the voice of reason’, Saurun Phuppu, who knows gold rates like the back of her hand, and Sharjah Phuppa who, well, works in the Middle-East.
Rahil says these characters are inspired from his close and distant family. A Dakhni Muslim, he grew up in neighbourhoods like Shivajinagar, KG Halli and HBR Layout.
Rahil says he discovered his Dakhni identity during the pandemic — rap artiste Pasha Bhai dropped a Dakhni single ‘Eid Ka Chaand’; comic Danish Sait was vowing netizens with his sketches in a mix of Kannada, Dakhni and English; writer Yunus Lasania was differentiating Dakhni history from that of the Mughals on his Instagram page, Thathyderabadiboy.
“Until then, I used to think what we speak at home was a slang version of Urdu. But I learned that Dakhni is a mix of Urdu, Kannada, Marathi and Telugu,” he shares.
On the origins of ‘Hallubol’ (meaning, speak softly), he says, “One day, my cousin and I were watching cartoon shows in English. I realised there is no cartoon show in Dakhni for his kid to watch. Since most people like to consume content on social media, Alankrita and I decided to make a comic series.”
As he embraced his language, he realised how his community had been used for comic relief in films like ‘The Angrez’ (2005) and old songs like ‘Hum kaale hain to kya hua dilwaale hain’ featuring Mehmood. “We are not clowns. We are like any other community. We have our joys and sorrows. I hope to humanise the community with the comic series, especially in the age of Islamophobia,” Rahil says.
In a bid to keep things real, the couple is working on a comic book ‘Mard Ban’ (Be a man). “It will focus on toxic masculinity, which is prevalent in the Dakhni community. We will release it in this year’s Comic Con,” Rahil shares.
Look up @hallubol on Instagram and YouTube