Overview
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The Reluctant Fundamentalist is an intelligent and poignant story by acclaimed filmmaker Mira Nair that illustrates the anti-Islam sentiment reverberating throughout post 9/11 America where violence against Muslims increased by 1600% following the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Cutting between the rich imagery of Lahore and the bustling suits of New York City, we follow Princeton-educated Changez – a Pakistani man committed to achieving his American dream as an economic analyst. He is introverted, yet charismatic, driven by the opportunities of wealth and power that litter the Western world in his relentless pursuit of success - manoeuvring through the notoriously impenetrable world of Wall Street.
Following the devastating collapse of the World Trade Centre, Changez is faced with alienation and suspicion within the world he grew to love. He’s verbally abused without provoking and arrested without reason, branded a radical simply by association.
While Changez initially perseveres through the marginalisation he enouncters for being a racial and religious minority, he quits Wall Street and is pushed back to his roots despite achieving his goal to master America’s capitalist regime that he had so admired.
The combination of religious, social and political circumstances prompted a personal realisation that he could use his knowledge and skills to make a difference in his homeland, becoming a university lecturer on the subject of minimising international involvement in domestic politics. He could teach his compatriots about the value of contributing to their own society, therefore using his academic abilities to achieve something positive.
The film structure is captivating, with constant jumps between past and present, Changez’ perspective versus the American bureaucrats, and Muslim vs Western points of view. It leaves the audience second guessing what the message will ultimately be. The director bravely touches on other minority discrimination where Changez’ revered business mentor, is subtly identified as a homosexual white man, who stands steadfastly by his friend with the understanding of someone who has experienced targeted discrimination.
The story setting of post 9/11 New York is based on the historical event and its disturbing consequences, and is a fitting place to discuss the wider relationship between America and the Islamic World – but ultimately the movie is about one man’s poignant journey toward self-actualisation. Cleverly, Nair has used the movie as a vehicle for the education of the audience as to the frightening sweep of discrimination against any and all Muslims that was a not widely discussed result of 9/11. Changez’ story is a beautifully executed, emotive, relevant and humanising story above all else.