00:00 Outlook brings to you excerpts from its latest issue titled Cinema Politico.
00:06 The issue explores politics and cinema and the ever blurring lines between the two.
00:12 Ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha elections, a slew of propaganda movies have hit the big screen and OTT platforms amid much criticism and approach,
00:22 while many more films are slated to release in the coming weeks stirring even a bigger debate.
00:28 The latest issue of Outlook looks at the genre of nationalist and propaganda films in the Indian context
00:35 and also continues with the exploration of the ideology question in the context of upcoming general elections.
00:42 Both themes are contextual and linked in many ways.
00:47 Cut, Copy, Paste by Hazara Najib, a student of Development Studies with interest in the intersection of gender, development and minority rights.
00:57 She looks at popular cinema's ability to intrude the mass psyche also visible in India,
01:03 where cricket and Bollywood determine how we think and act.
01:08 It has also determined the idea of nation and nationhood.
01:13 Representation of Muslim characters in Indian cinema has been limited.
01:17 They are either terrorists or glorified individuals who have no substance other than fixed ideas of patriotism.
01:25 One of the most persistent questions when discussing the interplay of cinema and society is who influences whom,
01:32 whether the movies merely reflect the already existing socio-political narratives or they play a role in forming their narratives.
01:40 However, this question does not deny that cinema influences viewers, shapes narratives and forms opinions.
01:49 Cinema indeed can be considered the most potent tool in opinion formation.
01:54 A fact very well known to Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels,
01:59 who used it as a medium for the propagation of Nazi ideas and the genocide of Jews in Germany.
02:07 Popular cinema's ability to intrude on the mass psyche is also visible in India,
02:12 where cricket and Bollywood determine how we think and act.
02:16 It has determined our idea of nation and nationhood.
02:20 Showcasing characters that an Indian wishes to be.
02:24 However, Bollywood's idea of nationhood often replaced Indianness with Hinduness.
02:30 They often resorted to homogenizing the nationhood using one religion by excluding another.
02:37 This exclusionary practice against Muslims in Bollywood did not start with the rule of the BJP.
02:43 It became more direct with their rule.
02:45 The various symbols, stereotypes and situations employed in Bollywood movies
02:50 constantly attempted to other the Muslims, thereby reinforcing Hindu nationalist agendas.
02:56 The terrorist, the patriot and the veiled Muslim woman.
03:00 There has been a significant change in the representation of Muslims in Bollywood cinema
03:05 since the period of post-liberalization.
03:08 The Surma-lined eyes of the Nawabs were replaced with the bloodshot eyes of the terrorists.
03:14 There were, most importantly, three main stereotypes surrounding Muslims in post-liberalization Indian cinema.
03:21 The first and the most popular one was that of the terrorist.
03:25 Since 26/11, there has been a string of movies that discuss India's defense and security
03:31 and the danger that came from one group, the Muslims.
03:35 These characters are often found with a skull cap and a tasbih at their hand,
03:40 spewing venom at India and Indians.
03:43 They are shown to be speaking in Urdu and chanting 'Allahu Akbar' at regular intervals.
03:49 For this and more, read the latest issue of Outlook.
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