# My Family Held Me Hostage for 3.5 Years After I Became Muslim! - Ex-Hindu

- Language: en
- Published: 2026-09-05
- Canonical: https://blog.towardseternity.com/en/blog/i-was-kidnapped-for-accepting-islam-hindu-converts-to-islam
- Source video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNqzrQlLLFY
- Channel: Towards Eternity

This is the cleaned transcript of the source video. The speech is unaltered.

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The next day I phoned up my parents. I said, I've got something to tell you. I've become Muslim. Pagal ho gaya? Have you gone crazy? You have been brainwashed. Move! Don't make this harder. Three and a half years, I was stuck in India. I was taken hostage. Brother grabbed me, and he literally stopped me from praying. I said stop! I ran into the village. I didn't have any slippers on, and they were all looking for me. And one of the neighbors, he came out and he gave me a slap like that. And I was thinking... He drags me into the house. He comes and punches me straight in my face. And he said, "Do you see that girl there?

She is the daughter of the Pandit in this area." Because this guy is a billionaire. All you have to do is marry my daughter and you will have everything. He goes, "Just eat a piece of pork." What?! And we got to finally, there was like a waterfall. It was the Ganges. And it was wintertime. "You're going underneath that." Walk under the waterfall! Then I got to the embassy and they said, "Look, we got your money. We bought your ticket. Friday morning, you're on the way. First plane to back to London." I was amazed. I was like really happy. As I was at the airport, there was this Sikh guy and he was the one who was stamping your passports.

One guy came and he goes to him, "Where's your passport?" "I don't know." He goes, "Go over there." And I got -- I got a bit worried, man. This is my chance to leave, and I don't want any problems. Assalamu alaikum (peace be upon you), Brother Muhammad Isa. Welcome to Towards Eternity and thank you for accepting our invitation. I want to start with who is Muhammad Isa? Can you tell us briefly about your life, please? Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh (and upon you be peace). It's an honor to be here. I was born in India, in Punjab, in a place, a town called Sanaur, to a Hindu family.

I was one of four siblings, and eventually at the age of four I came to London, and later on at the age of 14, 15 I had doubts about -- about Hinduism, whether it was the truth. I started looking at other religions, and then I became Muslim. It was a big shock to my family, and that led for them to take me to India to keep me hostage there for three and a half years. So in there, I faced many struggles. There was a bit of violence. I was given drugs, and I escaped from India, and I came back to London, and I continued my following of Islam, and learning about Islam, and building my relationship with my family. How was your life in regards to faith? What were you believing in?

We were not just any Hindus. In Hinduism, there is a caste system. You had the people at the bottom, they were the people who used to clean the toilets, they were called the untouchables. And at the top were the Brahmins. They owned the land. They used to put the idols into the temples, and they are looked up to in society. People give them gifts, people invite them to weddings, and they are adhered to by everybody in society. And that's who we were. We were at the top of the chain. So culturally we were raised as Hindus. Every room we had idols, it was -- and pictures as well, of the Hanuman, the monkey god, of Shivji, the snake around his neck. We have Kali Ma. Kali Ma was an evil goddess.

So if you want to do evil to someone, you would pray to her. So around the house, we would have these, and my mum used to worship them. My mum was a vegan. My dad, he used to make us eat meat. Chicken, uh, lamb. And every Sunday she would make a roast, and we hated -- we hated meat. The only meat we couldn't eat was beef, because the cow was sacred, so we didn't want any beef, so we just didn't eat the cow. So how did your journey towards Islam begin? So my best friend was a Muslim. Colonial mentality, that Muslims were evil, and don't trust them. When I got to university, I started discussions. My friends used to say things to me.

They said, "Look, you worship a monkey god." And I didn't know what to say, because, uh, it was true. And then he invited me to his house, and while we were eating, he would ask me a question. He said, "What do you believe? Why are you Hindu? What's going to happen after you die?" And those questions circulated in my mind, I didn't know what to say. And he said, "Look, if you have a statue of one of your gods, the monkey god, and it falls to the ground, it breaks. Can it pick itself up?" And I said, "No, it's just a statue." He goes, "Then why do you worship something which can't help you, if it can't help itself?" Then he said, "Look, everything in the universe is limited.

It has a beginning, it has an end. It couldn't have brought itself into existence. Something outside, a creator must have brought it into existence. And everything in the universe is dependent. We need food, human beings need food, we need to go to the toilet. Plants need the sun, for light, for photosynthesis, and it's not eternal. Nothing is eternal. The sun is gonna wear away one day, the universe is getting old, we are getting old. Because we're not forever, therefore, there must be a creator that brought all of this into existence from nothing, because everything has a beginning.

And that creator has no beginning and no end, and He is eternal, and He is all-knowledgeable, all-powerful." And I thought, "Wow, that's -- that's amazing." Then we looked at all the religions. So we looked at Christianity, then I looked at the Torah, Judaism. Once I looked at all the religions, and I said to him, "What's left?" He said, "Islam." I said, "What is Islam?" So he gave a definition. He said, "Look, the creator, He is one, He is absolute, He is eternal. He is -- none is born of Him, nor is He born -- He doesn't give birth and He wasn't conceived. He's all-powerful. He doesn't die. The only way we can find out who that creator is, is if He sends us a message.

So books were sent through the prophets, and the prophets did miracles." I said, "What miracle do we have today?" And he said, "The Quran." I go, "What's the miracle of the Quran?" He said, "It was revealed in a time of Arabic. Arabic was the language, and everybody was -- there were poets. They used to write long pages of poetry in Arabic and they used to compete against one another. So the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), he was born in that time. He was called Al-Amin, the trustworthy one, and he was illiterate. He could not read or write Arabic, and he didn't believe in the idols -- they used to worship the idols. And so God chose him, and the Quran was unique.

It was above the level of Arabic of the poets. It was amazing. It had rhyme, style, and grammar of such profound meaning that the Arabs, they couldn't fathom the depth of the Arabic. They couldn't even produce something like it. So Allah, He challenged all of the Arabs to write something like the Quran, and they all failed miserably. Today, this miracle has never changed. No one has been able to produce something like the Quran." And I thought, "Wow, that makes sense." You know, I found that very interesting, and it convinced me. But he would show me the evidences and I would look, I would understand, and I would -- I would do my own research as well.

And I realized that what he was saying was the truth. I couldn't deny it. How did you like take your Shahada (declaration of faith)? Can you take us to those moments please? So I went back the next day, and I said, "You know what you believe? And I believe that too. I want to become Muslim." And we went to University of East London. At that university, there was a debate taking place. So then the speaker, he says, um, "I've got an announcement to make." He goes, "There's somebody in the audience who is a Hindu and he wants to become Muslim." So suddenly the whole stage erupted.

Everybody was saying it's a setup, and they were shouting, they were angry, but you know, I -- I didn't really care. So I -- the speaker said, "Come to the stage." So I came to the stage, he said, "Are you ready to take the Shahada?" And I go, "Yes." And he said, "Speak after me." He said, "Ashhadu an la ilaha illallah wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan abduhu wa rasuluh (I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah, and Muhammad is His servant and messenger)." So I said exactly what he said. And as I -- when I finished the word Muhammadan Rasulullah... I felt like this -- this cleansing through my body. It was something I've never felt before, and I was quite amazed by it.

And suddenly people are grabbing me, they're hugging me, and I thought, "What's this, why are they hugging me?" "You've become a Muslim. You've left that way of life, you've left the falsehood, and you've adopted the truth." And I said, "Wow." And so, how did your family and the people around you react to your conversion to Islam? So after I became Muslim, I felt different, you know, I was like a new person, and I didn't want to tell my parents at the moment about me becoming Muslim, because they hated Islam, they hated Muslims. So I realized that they wouldn't accept me as a Muslim, and they wouldn't allow me to pray and fast, so I decided to move out. The next day I phoned up my parents.

I said, "I've got something to tell you. I've become Muslim." She goes, "Pagal ho gaya?" She goes, "Have you gone crazy?" And she goes, "You've been brainwashed. Is it Muhammad? Did he bring you to Islam?" I said, "Listen, whether it's Muhammad or anyone" -- I go -- "they are born and they die, but Islam is the truth. The creator never dies. And that's what I believe. I believe in that, no matter what." And so I heard my dad in the background, he's saying to my mum, "We don't want him." Yeah, he said, "No, he can't come back to the house." And I was quite saddened. So I put the phone down, and then I just continued my life.

After some time, there was an event in a -- in a town hall, and my sister came to that event. And she said, "You know, our parents are a bit -- they're saddened. I think my dad took it quite bad." So I told my friends and two of my friends, very big guys, one Turkish guy, one Pakistani guy. So we went to the house with them, and I explained to them, "Look, I've become Muslim, because I'm convinced of it, not because of my friends. And I want to follow it. So if you want me to stay in this house, I have to follow Islam." And they agreed, but little did I know what their intentions were, and what their plan was.

And then I wanted to go back to London, but three and a half years, I was stuck in India. I was taken hostage and abducted, for, you know, just for believing in Islam. And they kept me there, hoping that one day I would leave Islam, and that I would be a Hindu, back to the Brahmin caste, just like the whole family, and that's what they hoped and wished. About a year and a half in, um, I was still practicing Islam, and my par-- my parents had failed to convince me back to Hinduism. They took me one day along a journey. It was like in a hill area, and there was a girl there, uh, she's quite fair, very good-looking. And he said, "Do you see that girl there?

She is the daughter of the Pandit in this area." He said, "Do you see all of the mountainside? He owns all of these properties, he rents them out. This guy is a billionaire, and if you marry her, you will never want to work again. You will have no need of money. You can get a massive jeep, you can travel the world, you can enjoy life. All you have to do is marry his daughter." I said, "Listen, you don't know what I know. This life is a test, to worship that creator, and to follow Him in every aspect of life. If we do that, do you know what He's gonna give us? Paradise, eternal. That is waiting for us in the next life.

Now why would I sacrifice that life to marry this girl and lose all of that? You have to be crazy to do that." So anyway, he ignored me, and we went into the hut, and he goes, "All you have to do is marry my daughter, and you will have everything. It -- it is all yours." He goes, "Just eat a piece of pork." I said, "What?!" He goes, "All you have to do is eat a piece of pork, and the contract is sorted." And I said to him, "Listen, take your daughter, take your property, and take your piece of pork, I don't want it. I've got something better waiting for me, Paradise, eternal." I rejected this millionaire's daughter, probably billionaire's daughter, because I wanted to follow Islam.

I didn't want the wealth of this life. I wanted the wealth of the akhirah (hereafter), to meet my Lord, to enjoy in that, and meet with my ummah (community) in Jannah (heaven). Jannah (heaven) is much greater than this. When I used to pray in India, my cousins used to put things in front of me, because it's strange for them. I'm praying, but there's nothing in front of me. So -- "Who are you praying to?" And they found it strange, but I know that, you know, I'm worshipping the creator, who has no image, no form, unlike their gods. My mother, she realized that things were not -- she was quite angry. And so they -- they stopped me from praying.

And my, uh, mother's brother grabbed me, and he literally stopped me from praying. I was really upset. How can they do this to me? You know, I haven't done anything to them. I only believed in that one true God. And so when they had let go of me, I waited a bit and then I ran. I was so upset. So then I ran into the village. I didn't have any slippers on, it was like -- I ran as far as I could, and I hid. And they were all looking for me, and one of the neighbors, he came out, big guy, and he gave me a slap like that, and I was thinking... and it hurt. He drags me into the house. And another neighbor, he comes and punches me straight in my face. And I was like...

I was like in tears, because of the punch. And I was thinking, "How could you do that? Who are you? You're just a human being. Wait till the Day of Judgment." One of my relatives, he used to worship this, follow this man, he was like a -- like a Pir, he was a saint. And they would go up and down the mountains and follow him everywhere. So he said to me, he goes, "He's 100 years old." Actually, he said he's 200 years old. I looked at him, I said, "Show me his birth certificate." And he looked at me, je rolled his eyes at me, je said, "How dare you? How dare you're looking at him?

How dare you question him?" And I said, "Um, I would like to meet this, uh, spiritual person." And he goes, "Yeah, you can meet him, and he's got a degree in English." I go, "Wow, okay, that's amazing, I should be able to speak to him." So when we went there, to this -- it's like a forest area. He wears orange clothes and people come and they give him gifts and they think he's very spiritual, like he's very close to God. Anyway, so we went to meet this guy and everybody was touching his feet, to give him that, you know, that respect. I thought, "I'm not touching your feet, I only bow to Allah." So he looked at me, and realized, "Look, everybody else is touching my feet, but this guy is not.

It's a bit strange, he's disrespecting me." So I met him, and I said, "Listen, my name is Muhammad. I believe there's one creator, and I can prove there's a creator. And I can prove that this creator sent a revelation to all of mankind called the Quran, and I can prove the Quran is from Him without a doubt." And I said, "You believe in Hinduism, you're a Hindu. You believe it's the truth. So, you know, can you prove it to me?" And he said, "You Muhammadism first." I said to him, "Look, it's not Muhammadism, it's Islam. It's a complete submission to the creator." I said to him, "Okay, so..." I gave him an example. I said, "Look at this hut. It's limited.

Look at the wire, which is formed to make -- to get to the light -- it's limited, it's not forever. Everything in the universe is limited, except the creator, because He brought it all into existence, and we too are limited. We're going to die one day. He's created everything. We're not gods. And He has sent revelation, this Quran, and what He's done, He's given a book to all of mankind and He's protected it from error, from mistake, from change. And this Quran is miraculous in nature, you cannot produce something like it.

And that's why we say this is the message from that creator, and that Allah, He is the creator of all mankind, and He is the only one worthy of worship." And I said, "Your turn." Then he went like -- he goes, "In the beginning..." He was speaking Punjabi. He goes, "Ik nehar tha." He goes, "There was a river. And Jo nehar tha, woh Sindhu log the. On the river, the river Sind, there were the people, they were called the Sindhus." And he goes, "Then bigar gaye. They became corrupted." I go, "I got it, I got it, I got it.

So the river Sind became the river Hind, and the Sindhus became the Hindus, and that's why Hinduism is the truth!" And he goes to me, "Bewaqoof!" He goes, "You idiot!" And then I thought, "Wow, you're calling me an idiot." So then he goes -- then he started to say, he goes, "I can prove to you God. We can all become God." And I thought, "Wow, okay." And he says, "Look at this wire, it's eter-- it's unlimited." And he was using the same words that I was using. And he goes, "We can become God as well, like this." And I said to him, "Listen, the wire is not unlimited. It's limited, it depends on how much the guy who came to cut it had. Yeah, it's not unlimited, it's limited.

And listen, when you were young, you were five years old, when you were 20 years old, and now you're 80 or 70 years old, do you think you could fly across the room? You can't, because you're limited. You're just a human being. You can't do it. It's impossible. You can never become God. God is not like us." And he goes to me, "Bewaqoof!" He goes, "You idiot!" And I just looked at my relative, and I said, "Wow, is this the level of intellect? Is this the person that you're following? He can't even answer my questions. How can you follow him?" So anyway, that discussion ended abruptly. So my mother decided, "I need to do a different tack." So she decided to do the stick approach.

So again, we were traveling from place to place, quite far away. So we went to this place and we got to, finally, there was like a waterfall. It was the Ganges. The water was coming from there, and, um, everybody was going and they were bathing with their clothes under the -- under this water, and it was wintertime. I said to my relative, uh, and my mum, I said, "What's happening here?" He goes, "You're going underneath that. You're not listening, you're going underneath the water." I go, "No, I'm not." He goes, "Yes, you are." And so next thing you know, they grabbed me, and they put me in the queue. I'm in the queue now for the waterfall. I'm thinking, Oh my gosh, they've held me tight.

And next thing you know, I'm in the waterfall, and the water is pouring on my head. I felt like I was drowning. And then they kept me there for a bit of time, and then they pulled me out. And so my relative says, "Do you feel something? Do you feel something different?" And I go, "Yeah, I do actually." They were getting happy. Maybe something was happening. I said, "Yeah." I go, "Before I was cold, now I'm cold and wet!" And they were like, "What?" I go -- I said to him, "What do you think? Do you think Islam is some kind of spirit inside me that's come, and the water from the Ganges, this so-called purified water, is going to flush this evil Islam out of my body?

You think the water from the Ganges -- dirty water with dead cows in it, people washing their clothes in it -- do you think this unpurified water is gonna change me? I'm convinced that Islam in my mind that it's the truth." So the next thing I know, they grab me again. And I thought, "What's happening here?" And they take me inside this temple. And in the temple, there's this little Pandit, and he's got his bottle with him, and it's got some holes in it. And he's throwing some liquid at me. And I said, "Oh, what's that?" I didn't know, but it was urine -- cow's urine -- because they believe the cow is sacred. So he's reciting all these hymns at me.

I said to him, "Look, what are you gonna do?" And he's continuing. And obviously it didn't work. The cow urine is not gonna change me, and his hymns, they don't mean anything to me, so obviously it didn't work. So now we were getting near the end, and we couldn't keep moving about. So we settled in one of our houses in the town. So anyway, my mum started acting a bit funny. She said, "Do you want some tea?" And I said, "Okay." And she gave me some tea, and after I drank it, I felt a bit funny. My -- it's like my neck was like it's gonna break. It was -- I felt that my neck was going like that. And next thing you know, they've ordered a cab, and they've taken me to the village.

And in the village, my cousin was there next to me, and she said, "Don't take any more teas, they're giving you drugs." And I go, "What?" I wrote many letters saying, "Look, I'm a bit upset, I don't know what's going to happen to me." One of my relatives came around, and he said, "You've been writing letters, haven't you? Your friends are coming to India to rescue you. And when they come, we're gonna deal with them." And I said, "Listen, how can you deal with my friends? How can you deal with people who love death more than life? They're waiting for the next life. It is much better. They're not scared." And he looked at me and he started thinking, "Wow." He couldn't put an argument forward.

And I continued, because I always had hope in Allah, that, you know, no matter what situation I face, Allah is always there. And Allah will always do the best by me. And most of all, I missed the fact that living in a foreign land, it was very difficult to find a mosque, to get a copy of the Quran. Once I had -- I managed to ask an Imam (leader of prayer), and after about three weeks I managed to get hold of a copy of the Quran. It was like gold dust. And I used to hide in secret and I used to read it. But unfortunately my relatives, they found the copy of the Quran and they took it, and I was really upset. I was really upset.

It was like amazing, you know, that connection with Allah, you know, reading it, is amazing. All of these things happened. My mum realized it's not happening, that she's not going to convince me to become a Hindu again, to leave Islam. And then she went back to London for a bit, left me with relatives. And that's -- that was my opportunity, because my mum left me a little bit of money. I quickly went into the town, bought a luggage, and I started packing. I bought a train ticket as well. So Monday night, uh, got my clothes, everything ready, and I was walking down the street. And -- who should come but my relative, who's the son of the mayor.

He said, "Where are you going with a suitcase?" I thought, "Oh my gosh, this is it. The plot has been foiled." And then I thought, "What shall I say?" I said, "I'm -- I'm just going to, um, the embassy to sort out my passport." They go, "Okay." Because they knew I'd become Muslim, but they didn't know what was -- what was happening. Then I was relieved. I thought, "Wow." Then I got to the train and the train was late. It was the wintertime, it was cold, it was like a fog. And I thought, "Oh my gosh, the train is not coming." Eventually after some time the train came, so I got on the train.

Then I got to the station, I took a, uh, rickshaw, a tempo, to the embassy, and I said, "Look, I'm from London and, you know, I've been kept in India, my parents are trying to get me married off, and I wanted to continue my life in London, and you know, it was all because I became Muslim." And they said, "Okay, so we've heard from your friends." They said, "Look, we've got your money, we bought your ticket, we got your emergency exit visa, Friday morning, you're on the way. First plane back to London." I was amazed. I was really happy. And as I was at the airport, there was this Sikh guy and he was the one who was stamping your passports.

And one guy came and he goes to him, "Where's your passport?" And, uh, he goes, "I don't know." He goes, "Go over there." And I got -- I got a bit worried, man. This is my chance to leave, and I don't want any problems. But the guy said to me, he goes "If you have any problems, let me know." But then I thought, you know, "Who is this guy? He's just a human being. I will just -- I will just explain the situation. I have the truth. Why am I worried? Allah is with me." So I went up to him, and, uh, he goes, "Where's your passport?" And I go, "I've lost my passport." He goes, "Where's your passport?" I go, "I've lost it.

I've just got this emergency exit visa." He looked at me, stamped it, and he goes, "Go." Then I went, got on the plane. Do you know those movies you watch, and the airplane door is closed, and you're just waiting, somebody is gonna come in and grab you? I had that moment. I was waiting, and suddenly the door just shuts. And I'm -- Alhamdulillah (all praise is due to Allah). I was thinking, "Wow." So I'm on the way back to London now. So my friends, they're at the airport, they're waiting for me. I'm really happy. I've got my suitcase, and I'm back in London. I've escaped all of that situation, after three and a half years of what they put me through.

You know, Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala (the Most Glorified, the Most High), you know, He -- He saved me from that. He tested me through all those trials, and He saved me. And you know, they are not gonna stop me anymore. Do you ever regret becoming a Muslim? Never. How could I regret following the truth for what I was created for to worship Allah? The only thing I would have liked was to be born in the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him), to be with his companions, to carry the dawah (invitation to Islam), to establish Islam on the Earth, like we need it today.

One thing I do regret is my dad, he passed away just before COVID, and I regret that maybe I didn't do everything in my power to speak to him, to convince him to become Muslim. Even though I tried, he held on to his religion like you hold on to the idols he had, he would never let go of them. He believed that what he was following was the truth, and I explained to him, but he never accepted it. And he passed away. Have you ever felt a special connection with Allah? You know, I always wanted to go to Hajj (pilgrimage). With my wife, that opportunity arose, and we went to Hajj (pilgrimage) in 2024. The thing about Hajj (pilgrimage) was that, you'd get lost, and I got lost three times.

I got lost three times without money, without a phone. One time I got lost, and I was trying to find the hotel, but the name of the hotel was changed somehow, I don't know, on the internet. I was a bit upset, I started -- tears flowed on my face, and I made lots of dua (supplication). I said, "Ya Allah (O Allah), you know, guide me to the place, you know." And there were three directions to go. There was one straight way, there was one that divided two, and there was another one. And I thought, "Let me follow that, I'm sure it's on the main road." And as I followed, I got to the hotel.

And when I got to the hotel, the Imam (leader of prayer), they were like shocked, because-- they called me Isa. And they were like -- they said, "You know, many people have got lost, they haven't come back. You're the only one."He goes, "Isa has returned!" And they were quite shocked, just like the Prophet Jesus, he goes, "You returned!" So I returned, and I got lost again, another time, and a third time. And each time I got back to the hotel. I was quite shocked. So those times, you know, when you are lost, Allah always finds a way for you to find your way back. What impressed you the most about Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)?

He was Al-Amin, the most trustworthy one, and all his tribes, even though they didn't agree with the message of Islam, they knew he was a truthful person. They were honest. They would trust him with their goods, they would trust him to solve their problems, like taking the black stone down to the Kaaba (the sacred house in Mecca). It says, "Laqad kana lakum fi rasulillahi uswatun hasanah" That in the Messenger, Muhammad (peace be upon him), is the best example for mankind. He was the best in how he looked after his wives, he was the best in dawah (invitation to Islam), he was the best as a commander, and he was the best in implementing Islam.

So what better person in this life can there be except the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)? And lastly, if there was a chance to speak to all the Hindus in the world, what would you like to say to them, if you only had a few moments? I would say forget everything that you know. Look around you, look at things, know that these things are not eternal, but they have been designed by someone. So the universe, the uni-- solar system, the galaxies, the billions of stars, all of this didn't just pop out of nowhere. Something doesn't come from nothing, rather, there is a creator that has brought this into existence. And that creator has given a message, evidence, which is the Quran.

And it's not like all the other books. Study the Quran, when you realize it's the truth, when you find that there's no mistakes in it, follow that revelation, become Muslim, and Paradise is yours. Have you also converted to Islam, but don't know where to start? Or maybe you have been a Muslim your whole life but want to make a fresh start and learn Islam from scratch? That's exactly why we built the the Step Islam app. It's a completely free and ad-free app that teaches you about Islam in a clear, organized way. You will easily learn the core foundations of faith, essential Quranic terms, and complete practical tasks that build lifelong habits at your own pace.

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