Donald Trump and Chabuddy G from the TV show People Just Do Nothing have a lot in common. Both of their heads have been colonised by dubious coiffures. Both are consumed by the rampant desire for a quick buck. Also they are both Asian.
Or at least they are in the new short film Donald Mohammed Trump. Starring PJDN’s Asim Chaudhry, it’s a surreal satire that follows US politics’ favourite grabber of genitalia as he’s 20 minutes late to go onstage at a rally. The crowd are ready: they’ve been pre-filled with a paranoid hatred of other cultures (they even demanded Bruce Springsteen’s birth certificate after Born in the USA played). But there’s a slight problem: their leader has inexplicably turned into a man of Asian appearance – not ideal for a politician with a reputation for whipping up a spot of Islamophobic hatred.
“I just loved the idea of making Trump face up to the reality of the things he preaches,” says Chaudhry. In the film, Donald M Trump is hastily caked in quick-fix makeup, put in a wig and shoved onstage. His supporters do not react kindly. “When you incite hatred, it never leads to beautiful things, does it? It always leads to violence.”
It’s not the demonisation of Trump you might expect, though. This is partly because Chaudhry was told not to do an impersonation: “I’d watched hours and hours of Trump to get the accent right, then the director goes: ‘Don’t. I want you to be human’.” But mainly because it’s more about the politics than the man; Chaudhry’s portrayal leaves Trump seeming less like a monster than a puppet of dark forces beyond his control. “The message really is about the agenda,” he explains. “It is about Trump, but only because he’s the latest person preaching this stuff.” This Trump isn’t a Machiavellian villain; he’s a fool with no idea what he’s unleashing.
Playing him was still scary, though. And there’s something deeply unsettling about the monumental makeover that let a 30-year-old Asian man play a 70-year old bequiffed caucasian. “I looked like a monster!” laughs Chaudhry. “I couldn’t leave the green room because I didn’t want to scare kids.” Not least because he bears a fair similarity to a certain ex-Mayor of London. “I look exactly like Boris from behind! Boris with a rugby-playing build!”
The project is a labour of love for Chaudhry, raised a Muslim in a world where the association of “Islam” and “terrorist” has become normal. “It’s so real to me,” he says. “I know what it is to live in a world where people judge you straight away on your race and religion.” The same is true of the rest of the crew, who threw the film together on such a shoestring budget that the on-set catering facilities consisted of the director’s mum knocking up snacks.
The hope of the film, presumably, is to avoid the scary prospect of Trump’s policies actually coming to pass? “I don’t know if I’m scared. But the Muslim ban is ridiculous. How would he even enforce it? Like, I’m not a practicing Muslim but my mum is. How’s that gonna work at the border?” he sighs. “Ultimately though, I’m worried about all the hatred. I’m hoping this might hold a mirror up to it.” He pauses. “And I’m hoping that when people look in the mirror they see that what’s looking back isn’t a pretty picture.”
