Qatar to offer nationality to Indian artist 25, February 2010
Posted by thegulfblog.com in Qatar.Tags: MF Husain, MF Husain controversy, Qatar, Qatari citizenship
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MF Husain the Indian artist who has been forced to flee his country after drawing a series of pictures of a nude Hindu goddesses has been offered Qatari citizenship.
The BBC reports that there are at least 900 cases against him in courts throughout India and that over the years he has been “harassed by mobs in the country and his exhibitions have been vandalised”.
So far it is not known if Husain has not chosen to accept the accolade or not.
The Gulf blog 
I don’t even know what to say. Was hoping he didn’t have to leave India for obvious secular strength reasons, but Qatar’s has to know they’re potentially accepting an artist who is not beyond sacrilegious art, which could blow up in their faces.
Are you sure this isn’t some big joke? I can’t figure out why Qatar would have any reason to offer this guy citizenship…(although since he is a bit long in the tooth, he wouldn’t be mooching for too long) I vaguely remember an episode in which a prominent religious prophet was depicted by an artist in a less-than-flattering manner, causing a bit of a kerfuffle. However, I don’t recall that artist being offered Qatari citizenship. Presumably, if said religious prophet had simply been drawn nude, it would have been more acceptable and perhaps citizenship would have been bestowed upon the artist.
Moral of the story: The only way for an ajnabi to get Qatari citizenship is through erotic religious art. I wonder if a nude fresco of the Virgin Mary would be sufficient….
[…] Hindustan Times discussing Qatar’s role as a haven for exiles. This stems from Qatar’s offer of nationality (which has now been accepted) to the controversial Indian artist MF Husain. Ruben […]