Big Controversy: Bigger Questions

Understanding India is extremely difficult. It has been thousands of years, and there has certainly been no fixed pattern identified which meticulously defines the Indian mindset and behavior. Such incredible is the diversity and heterogeneity of our country that you can hardly predict which way the things are going to turn.

When Sanjay Leela Bhansali would have thought of making Padmavati, perhaps he would not have thought of the tremors that the movie is going to create prior to its release. Or even if he had given it a thought, he probably underestimated the extent of displeasure that the movie would face.

This is indeed getting out of hands now. I do not get a very good feeling of all that has unfolded in the past couple of weeks regarding this controversy. And let me make it very clear why. Firstly, let me strongly emphasize upon the fact that I am strictly against any form of distortion with the historical facts and misrepresentation of the rich legacy that we have inherited from our ancestors. In fact, being someone who has spent most of his life in Rajasthan, I can emphatically state that I am immensely proud of the traditions that the state of Rajasthan is a strong symbol of.

Further, my problem here is not with the opposition of the movie. It is democracy after all, and right to protest has been granted to each and every citizen of the country. But my way of analyzing the situations is somewhat different. I look at the long term impact and the possible implications that the present scenario might have.

 So there are primarily three things which this particular series of events has shown which I feel are very alarming. Firstly, this shows an easily perceptible lack of trust that the citizens mostly have on their institutions and organizations. We all know that there is a well defined and fully functional body called the Central Board for Film Certification that comes under the ambit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and has the responsibility and the authority to certify a film before it is released for the public.

Ideally, and I say ‘IDEALLY’ it is the Censor Board that should have decided if there is anything wrong with the movie and taken necessary measures (including cuts). But given our trust issues with our statutory bodies, we hardly have the patience to wait for the Censor Board’s remedy and we rather resort to the option of getting to roads and vandalizing property, assuming that the movie would be able to get through even if there is something immensely wrong with it.

Secondly, it reiterates that the Indian mass is very emotional and impulsive. Somewhere down the line in such issues, our logic and rationale take a comfortable backseat and we let our actions being driven by emotions and public sentiments. And there is a heavier and much more turbulent flow of emotions when it comes to matters pertaining to our caste and religion. Like in this issue, most of the protesters have themselves admitted to the fact that they have not even seen the movie but they still have enough reasons to protest against it.

Lastly, and this one according to me is the most hazardous of all of them is the inability of our authorities to stop this disruption. What has actually taken me aback is the support- either open or passive that the politicians have offered to these protests which has unfortunately led to further agitation of the already resentful public. Some loudmouths even went on to the extent of giving threats of beheading and killing the cast and crew of the film. Language of this kind is absurd and in fact shameful when it comes from a political person speaking in the public discourse. 

Moreover, the approach of many state governments has been that of offering an extensive support to the Padmavati protests. Some states have already banned the movie while some would be perhaps doing it soon, going by the trend. This proves that even our ruling parties follow the policy of silent acceptance when it comes to dealing with such sensitive issues.  What if another group or community powerfully starts demanding something irrational tomorrow? Will we see the same approach? This is indeed a question to ponder.

Let me end from the same point from where I began. The makers and the entire team of the movie have put in great effort in making the film and also a lot is at stake as far as the financial implications are concerned. In spite of all this, I still feel that if there is any historical fact that has been distorted or if any character or community has been shown in the wrong light, then the necessary actions should definitely be taken.

But it should be done only if there is a genuine requirement. Opposing just on the basis of presumption is indeed fallacious and even unlawful.  Moreover, it must be ensured that peaceful opposition does not turn into mob violence and causing of damage to public property. Taking the law into own hands is never a solution. We have institutions and authorities who should act responsibly and put the things under control. Only then would that lack of trust between the public and the state be bridged and crisis like this would be nipped into the bud in future.