June
02 , 2006
The Da
Vinci Code – A Mega Money Minter
Dan Brown’s novel,
The Da Vinci Code, and its film version have both
set up world records as moneymaking ventures. But,
the merits of both products have generally been
accepted in the spirit of acclaiming the King’s
New Clothes. Critics, however, find numerous holes
in the story that mixes facts, fiction, faith and
fantasy to produce a concoction that negates hoary
Christian beliefs.
The book was published in 2003 and has sold more
copies (100 million in 44 languages at the time
of writing) than any other book except the Bible
or the Qur’an. In the very first week of its
release, its film version netted over $50 million
and is expected to give before long more revenue
than any other film.
In mid-May, on my visit to Pennsylvania from California,
I found passengers in airport lounges and on the
plane absorbed in the book that had been prominently
featured in all the three airport bookshops that
I visited.
I had read the book out of sheer curiosity two weeks
earlier and could hardly appreciate the rave reviews
it had commanded, including cover stories in both
Time and Newsweek magazines. Its popularity is as
mystifying to me as was the hype about Salman Rushdie’s
novel “Satanic Verses”.
When a self-serving Maulana, who masqueraded as
a religious figure but was generally called “Maulana
Whisky”, led a demonstration against the book
in Islamabad resulting in half a dozen deaths in
police firing, I started looking for a copy of the
book. I was surprised to find that no copy till
then had been commercially imported into the country.
The Maulana and his followers could not have even
seen the book. The book was promptly banned and
I could secure a copy only when I reached California.
I found it as good a moneymaker as Dan Brown’s
book. Both affront religious sensibilities and excite
curiosity and interest on that basis. Both sought
shelter as products of fiction, but leaders of the
relevant creeds declared both blasphemous. While
the Pope has not yet denounced Brown’s book,
numerous cardinals and other senior personalities
of the Roman Catholic creed have squarely condemned
it.
The religious chief of Iran, late Ayatollah Khomeini,
had even placed a reward on the head of Rushdie!
The condemnations did not produce the desired results
in both cases. At the theatre in Pennsylvania where
I went to see the film, a thin line of middle-aged
protesters carried placards against the film. Majority
of the viewers comprised youth.
The Roman Catholic leaders advise their followers
to follow the worldwide rallies arranged by enthusiastic
Muslims against the Danish cartoons belittling Prophet
Muhammad. They find Brown’s book as sacrilegious
and blasphemous.
I had in these columns described the folly of the
Muslim protesters and hinted at the real beneficiaries
of the clash of civilizations who appeared to have
maneuvered the entire episode. The protests did
however create an impression of the intolerance
of the Muslim community.
In all of these incidents, religious sentiments
and attachment to folklore and legends have been
picked up by writers and editors ostensibly to expose
the inherent follies in them but actually to find
an effective ruse to make money.
Briefly, the plot of Da Vinci Code involves a conspiracy
of the Catholic Church to cover up the true story
of Jesus, to keep women down and to denigrate the
role of Mary Magdalene, a disciple and companion
of Christ, who was labeled a prostitute. The book
projects Christ a human being (not God or His son)
who married Magdalene and fathered a child whose
descendents still roam the earth. It places under
focus the fierce battle being currently waged by
zealous, rigid, and close–minded Christians
against progressive Christians and spiritual seekers
who are open, curious, and hospitable not only to
Christianity but all other religions. Also, it exposes
the extent of conspiracy to suppress the truth about
the Holy Grail legend. It is a mix of murder and
myth, and an amazing tale with enigma piled on secrets
stacked on riddles.
It reflects the erudition of the author who takes
you on journey through a covert, enigmatic world
revealed through a seemingly endless collection
of codes, puzzles, anagrams, cryptograms, and messages
hidden in Da Vinci’s art. Conundrums are wrapped
in anagrams and mysteries piled over mysteries.
Its brain-teasing faculty holds you in its grip
throughout the text of the tome and the 148-minute
length of the film.
If you are inflicted with ennui and start yawning,
you directly lose track of the flow of events. The
wrist-twisting volume too makes a similar demand
on the reader. It took me almost a week to go through
the text and every time I resumed reading, I had
to strain my memory to recall the earlier events.
The thread kept getting lost. The events moved fast
and sequences did not connect easily. Some of the
episodes could perhaps be shortened, if not deleted,
to make for piquant reading. Detailed portrayal
of self-flagellation of the diehard killer of the
secret cult of Opus Dei, triggers a feeling of discomfort.
But, it is a common ritual in the Shia sects of
Muslim communities during the lunar month of Muharram.
The objective is almost identical and being a part
of faith it should not be judged rationally.
Some of the codes and puzzles could have been deleted
without affecting the flow of the story. There are
far too many brainteasers. Similarly some of the
car chases could have been cut down to economize
on the length of the film.
Significantly, the film opened in mid-May the prestigious
Cannes Film Festival of France. Twenty films from
around the world are vying for the top prize. Critics
at the festival generally gave thumbs down to the
Da Vinci Code. They considered it slow and devoid
of a dramatic climax.
The film may not get the award but it is likely
to make more money than any other film. The book
already has. Evidently there is a mismatch between
the views of common people and those of experts
and acclaimed critics.
The bottom line is that it is a mega money minter.
That is what counts.
