“I am a Muslim. I trust you. Do you trust me enough for a hug?”
These were the lines written on a board at Mazim Milla’s feet as he stood blindfolded, with opened arms, on
Chowpatty in Mumbai on Thursday .
However Mazim isn’t the first to try an experiment of this kind to check the trust of strangers for a hug on the street.
Mazim aimed to send a message of peace in India’s commercial capital.
According to Mid Day newspaper, dozens of passers-by of all ages and genders came closer to take photos of the Mazim, many stopped, came closer to talk to him and and embraced him in a hug.
“A Muslim man stood at Chowpatty (in Mumbai) on Thursday and asked for trust and hugs. Mumbai trusted and hugged,” editor Sachin Kalbag posted on Twitter.
When asked about his peaceful initiative, the Muslim man said that this is an “experiment to see the reactions of people”.
The photo of the Mazim, the Muslim Man at Mumbai Street has been retweeted hundreds of times, with positive feedback.
“I feel so touched! I’m in tears!!!!!!!!!!!” a Twitter user wrote.
The project was the brainchild of 24-year-old Canadian Muslim Assma Galuta taking part in the ‘Blind Trust Project’ – a social experiment to “to break down barriers and eliminate the fear and ignorance projected towards Muslims and Islam.”
Muslims account for 180 million of India’s 1.1 billion people, the world’s third-largest Islamic population.