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Visualising Cultures from Sharma Jyoti

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Updated: Jan 19

Project | Representation of Muslims in Patriotic Hindi Films produced in the BJP era

Student | Sharma Jyoti

Course | DPAM6021 Visualising Cultures

Assignment | Develop a visual analysis based on at least one of the suggested areas in a research context (The Other, The Self and Role & Consequence of changes), which means that student should collect, evaluate and interpret a range of primary and secondary source materials using relevant visual research method(s), and exhibit originality in making critical arguments about the visual materials sampled. Write up and report the research process and findings in a research paper which supports and justifies the idea and the development of the visual artefact and reflects on the project's outcome after its completion. Choose a visual form or medium (e.g. a photo essay, a photo montage, a comic strip, an animation, a slideshow, a website, a video, etc.) which makes use of new media technologies to critically present and respond to the arguments developed from the research and create (and/or deploy) visual logics/ arguments.



Introduction

Since the establishment of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) as the ruling party in India, the country has witnessed a shift in its national manifesto into a singular one that advocates religion as its political ideology in the form of Hindutva, “an ideology that sought to define Indian culture in terms of Hindu values” (Britannica, 2021). One benefit of this translation of a religious majority (Hindus) in politics is to create a political majority and gain electoral benefits. It is important to note its Manichean character in dividing people which in this case is: the insiders (the religious majority) and the outsiders (the religious minorities). This agenda is communicated in various forms including popular cinema, “the language for a new form of politics” (Nandy, 1998, 12). After all, what better way to evoke patriotism than through a form that is loved and consumed by the masses: Bollywood. In films, political agendas are conveyed in their narrative. In this essay, I intend to research Bollywood films produced with themes of patriotism post BJP establishment. Such films promote Hindutva through an oriental discourse of the Muslim community which in turn fuels discrimination against them. Hindu Nationalism is legitimized through the subjective representation of the country’s historic victories against Muslims, the invaders. In the films, stereotypical constructions of Muslims are used to forward the Hindu nationalistic agenda by presenting them as ‘the Orient’ and justifying ‘the Occidental’s’ political and cultural domination of the ‘Orient’. Such films are also encouraged through political endorsement and the crystallization of these views is evident in the public response and their participation on social media against people on the opposition side of these narratives.


Research Scope and Methodology

Four films are selected for the primary analysis. Their descriptions are displayed in the annex. These films are selected based on the following conditions: The films were produced after 2014 (the year BJP was elected). The films possess themes of patriotism. The main character(s) must include Muslims or be in support of Muslims. Finally, the films are popular in terms of their consumption. Hence, the films selected are among the top 10  grossing films of that year.

The films are analyzed using visual and narrative analysis. Moreover, the sites of production and audience are investigated concerning the orientalism of Muslims in the Hindutva agenda. The political affiliations in the production and marketing aspect and the audience’s reception and reaction to the films are analyzed via social media and news posts.

 

Discussion

The Hindutva ideology tries to negate in its development of the Occident, the historical fact of the longstanding settlement of Muslim communities in this country. It is evident in the country’s historical texts and monuments such as masjids, forts, and the famous Taj Mahal. This ideology intends to re-position the development of the nation that “emerged from an ancient civilization, united by a shared history, sustained by pluralist democracy (2007)” (Sunalini and Rao, 2020, 74)  into a singular one. The historical elements in these patriotic films legitimize Hindutva as Indian history. Before the opening scene in each film, a disclaimer is posted indicating that, “the film does not infer or claim historical authenticity or accuracy”, is “fictitious” and it “does intend hurt any person, community feelings or beliefs.” However, in the trailers or promotions of these films, they are depicted as stories based on real events or real people in history. In Padmavaat, the film put a disclaimer that the story is based on the poem and claims to be fiction. However, the characters in the film such as the Rajput king and Alauddin Khilji were real people in Indian history. The lines between truth and fiction are blurred within the films. In a way, the disclaimers permit filmmakers to construct a narrative of history in popular cinema that fits with Hindu nationalism.


The first aspect of legitimizing a homogenized Indian past is to create Hindu supremacy by identifying the ‘Other’. These people or groups threaten the Hindu legacy with their invasions of the country. In Padmavaat and Tanhaji, the invaders are identified as the Mughal empire, in The Kashmir Files, they are the militants, and in Raazi, it is Pakistan. A common characteristic of the antagonists that is highlighted in these films is their religion. Religious freedom is analogous to national freedom. This is evident in the mixed religious and nationalistic markers used in the films for both protagonists and antagonists.



The protagonists blur the lines between religion and nation by using religious analogies to reflect on their experience of invasion in their empire. In Padmavaat, the Rajput king discusses with the queen, the potential arrival and interaction with Khilji (the villain). She compares the King’s meeting with Khijli to the one told in Ramayana, one of the two important texts in Hinduism. She says, “Lord Rama too never thought that Raavan will come disguised as a sage.” As war enrages, she says, “today our soldiers stand guard, for us, they are no less than God.” She later mentions, “When Rajputs fight for their land, the echo of their swords rumbles through ages.” In Tanhaji, when Tanhaji’s son’s father-in-law says to Tanhaji’s wife, that he would agree to her conditions if it was a religious matter however, “it is for Shivaji Raje [the Hindu ruler] who is just a human being”, she replies, “he is no less than God.” As for the villains, in The Kashmir Files, when the protagonist’s grandfather is being beaten up by the antagonist, he wails, “Hail Lord Shiva”. Then, the antagonist reminds him, “if you want to stay in Kashmir, you have to say Allah is the Greatest.” In Padmavaat, Khilji tells the King before kidnapping him, “I feel a strange connection to this soil. I want to take it with me.” Then, he reminds the king, “Even God doesn’t trust me.” In Tanhaji, Udaybhan Singh Rathore says, “I will eliminate the existence of the saffron [colour associated with Hinduism] from the face of this Earth.” The enemies align with the “Hindutva history” of “a glorious Hindu golden age followed by an era of Muslim oppression of Hindus” (Truschke, 2020, 4) and the current Hindu age remains under threat from this common enemy due to their unchanging characteristics over time. Like the dichotomist nature of war, the protagonists are also painted in opposite shades of white and black, good and evil, and finally Hindu and Muslim.

As explained in Said’s Orientalism, knowledge about the Orient is generated through imagined constructs that showcase them as sharing characteristics that are not possessed by the Occident. (Said, 1979, 39) The obvious difference between the two communities in India is their religion. The difference is visualized in contrast between the Hindu hero and Muslim anti-heroes. In the films, the Muslim antagonists are portrayed as barbaric in their ways. They take pleasure in devouring meat, as compared to Hindus who generally follow vegetarianism and treat animals sacredly such as cows. It isn’t just that they eat meat but the way they are depicted while eating it is what makes them look savage. Their amorality extends to humans in the forms of sadism.

In The Kashmir Files, the antagonist takes pleasure in forcing the protagonist’s mother to eat rice soaked in the blood of her husband in exchange for her family members’ lives. In another scene, the antagonist kills the protagonist’s mother by sawing her body in half. In Padmavaat, Khilji proclaims himself as the Mughal king after beheading the former king and sticking his head on a stick. In contrast, the Hindu protagonists are on the side of morality and virtue. They are either portrayed with strong family values, respectful mannerisms and using an only necessary amount of violence against the antagonist. As for their looks, the antagonists don thick-lined eyes, wear dark clothes, and often are seen under hard and dim lighting. This is evident in both historical films of pre-Modern India, and the historical film of modern India. In contrast, the Hindu protagonists are often illuminated with soft light and colorful clothing.  The contrasts create a singular view of Muslims as people of all ill-doings. It reduces the complexity of Muslims into caricatures of oppression who need to be tamed and the only feelings between the communities are fear or hate. This construction unifies the Hindu majority by establishing themselves as superior in contrast to the Orient which is inferior in culture. By representing the Muslims in a construct that is static, unalterable, and homogenously representative, the films strengthen the hegemonic ideology of casting Hindus as the ‘original Indians’ and Muslims as the Other. It is also supported by the BJP’s populist strategy to gather majority votes.

Such films receive approval and endorsements from politicians both politically and socially. To maximize distribution and viewership around the country, The Kashmir Files is exempted from taxes in eight states ruled by the BJP. (Poddar, 2022) In two states, the government announced time off from work for government employees so that they can go watch the film. (Poddar, 2022) Moreover, the film is shared and promoted by several politicians on social media. (Poddar, 2022) Similarly, Tanhaji was declared tax-free in at least 3 states. (CE Features 2020) Close to Tanhaji’s release, Prime Minister Modi tweeted people to go watch this film instead of another one that had the same opening day. (Modi, 2020)

 

The oriental discourse is not limited to the films. “The most visible arena that Hindu nationalists treat as a battleground is social media, where they smear, dox, and threaten people with great regularity” (Truschke, 2020, 8). Views that threaten the Hindutva narratives are often met with hate or are silenced. Two unsuccessful PILs were issued against The Kashmir Files due to its one-sided portrayal of the Kashmiri Muslims and inaccurate accounts of the Kashmiri Pandits. (Ahmad, 2022) Moreover, after the film was screened in local cinemas, in a viral video, “a member of the audience in support of the film can be seen urging Hindu men to preserve their religion by marrying Muslim girls so that their population does not increase in size” (Chowdhury, 2022). Due to her association with the film, the actress playing the Queen’s role received death threats from people who disagreed with the portrayal of the Queen in a dream sequence that was eventually removed where Khili imagines being with the Queen. (Singh,  2017) When the actor playing the antagonist in Tanhaji spoke in an interview about the film being historically inaccurate, people came out to debunk his views, trolled him on Twitter for being an ‘Islamist’ and targeted hate speech against his child. (Koimoi.com Team, 2020) In a country where Muslims are regular targets for hate speech and violence, how do they express their patriotism? Would they ever be deemed as patriotic?


In Raazi, when the main character is asked why she would take up the role of being a spy in Pakistan, she replies, “Nothing comes before my country, not even myself.” The filmmakers take up the task to depict patriotism beyond the oriental discourse. The main protagonist is a female. She is entrusted to be “the eyes and ears of the country” despite being Muslim. Both Indians and Pakistanis are viewed as patriotic for their nation outside the dichotomy of good and evil. Moreover, patriotism is evoked beyond religion. Few to no religious markers to distinguish between Pakistanis and Indians. The oriental stereotypes of Muslims discussed in the other three films were not used either. Instead, characters are motivated to act because of their country, not religion. The film takes the discussion of patriotism outside Hindutva and instead focuses on the internal conflict of doing morally questionable actions for the safety of their country. The film deals with the aftermath of patriotism. Towards the end, the protagonist sits alone in the house as she watches on TV that the Indian forces successfully deterred war between the two countries. Instead of portraying it in a celebratory note, the characters remind the audience of the loss and humanitarian crisis wars cause. As the protagonist sits next to the window, the film fades out and credits “the bravehearts who are anonymous in the history of our nation.” While the film displays this message in the context of espionage works of patriots, it also serves as an analogy to the effects of the oriental discourse on Muslims. The orient is “flat and politically homogenous in its identity” (Truschke, 2020, 5).  In the process of legitimizing Hindutva as a form of patriotism, the Muslims exist in a paradoxical nation. They belong in a country where there is a “willed imaginative and geographic distinction” (Pun, 2019, 76) that pulls them apart from their nation.


Annex

Name of Film

Plot Details

Genre

Muslim Char

Padmaavat (2018) Rank 2nd

Set in 1303 AD, Queen Padmaavat is known for her extraordinary beauty and strong sense of justice. The reigning sultan of Hindustan hears the legends of her beauty. In hopes of enslaving her, he then declares war on the Rajput kingdom.

Historical Drama

Allaudin Khilji

Mughal emperor

Male Antagonist

Raazi (2018) Rank 10th

Set in 1971, when the winds of war were blowing between India and Pakistan, Sehmat Khan is married into a Pakistani family so that she can get some valuable piece of information about the enemy as an undercover RAW agent.

Spy Thriller

Sehmat

Indian spy agent

Female Protagonist

Tanhaji  (2020) Rank 1st

In order to expand his territory, the Mughal emperor commands his army to invade the Maratha Empire which is known as Battle of Kondhala. Set in the 17th century, the movie is focuses the between the two commanders of the two empires.

Historical Drama

Udaybhan Singh Rathore

Commander representing the Mughal emperor

Male Antagonist

The Kashmir Files (2022) Rank 1st

The movie is about a Kashmiri Hindu college student who is raised by his exiled grandfather. After his grandfather’s death, the student begins to uncover the facts of his family members' deaths in relation to the exodus of Kashmiri Hindus in the early 1990s.

Historical Drama

Farooq Malik Bitta

 

Militant commander

 

Male Antagonist

 

References:

Academic Articles

  • Nandy, A., 1998. Introduction: Indian popular cinema as a slum’s eye view of politics. The secret politics of our desires: Innocence, culpability and Indian popular cinema, pp.1-18.

  • Pun, M., 2019. The East-West Dichotomy: From Orientalism to Postcoloniality. IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science (IOSR-JHSS), 24(1), pp.75-76.

  • Sunalini, K.K. and Rao, J.M., 2020. Shashi Tharoor’s Vision of Multicultural India. Paideuma Journal. vol. 8, no.7, pp. 71 – 74.

  • Truschke, A., 2020. Hindutva’s dangerous rewriting of history. South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal, (24/25).

News / Media Articles

Social Media

Books

  • Said, E.W., 1979. Orientalism.

Films

  • Padmaavat (2018) Directed by Sanjay Leela Bansali. Available at: Amazon Prime Video (Accessed 25 May 2022)

  • Raazi (2018) Directed by Meghna Gulzar. Available at: Amazon Prime Video (Accessed 25 May 2022)

  • Tanhaji (2020) Directed by Om Raut. Available at: Disney+ Hotstar (Accessed 25 May 2022)

  • The Kashmir Files (2022) Directed by Vivek Agnihotri. Available at: ZEE5 (Accessed 25 May 2022)

Others

 


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