On Thursday night, actress Sayani Gupta, on Twitter, compared the alleged gang rape of a Dalit woman in Hathras to the script for her film Article 15 after the Uttar Pradesh police officer said the forensic report of the victim did not confirm the rape.
Many seemed to agree with Sayani when commenting on how the 2019 crime drama, in which local police try to cover up a gangrape in Uttar Pradesh, is “eerily similar” to what is allegedly happening in Hathras. However, there was another section of the internet that could not help but point out the “hypocrisy” of Article 15’s protagonist Ayushmann Khurrana, who played a Brahmin policeman fighting caste-based atrocities in the film.
When your Article 15 movie was about to be released, you seemed to be the most caste-sensitive savarna on the planet. @ayushmannk Now that you don’t have a movie out, can’t you even say it was a Dalit woman? pic.twitter.com/3FYJarQHbu
– Agatha Srishtie 🌸 #DALITLIVESMATTER (@SrishtyRanjan) September 30, 2020
Srishty Ranjan, who is an influential Dalit voice on social media, called Ayushmann through an Instagram story in which the actor had condemned the alleged gangrape of Hathras’ victim without stating that “she was a Dalit.” Srishty wrote: “When your movie Article 15 was about to be released, you seemed to be the most caste sensitive Savarna on this planet. @Ayushmannk now that you don’t have a movie coming out, you can’t even say she was a Dalit? ? “
Ranjan, who also criticized Bollywood actresses Priyanka Chopra and Sonam Kapoor in a Twitter thread for failing to acknowledge caste crimes and sexual violence in the country, spoke to News18 about why he believes the film industry has failed her. their community.
“When upper caste people make a film about our trauma, it is nothing less than appropriation. Even when white people appropriate Indian culture, the people of our country call them out, but the same people don’t see how they savarna. dominate The film industry has always made money from the trauma of the downtrodden, be it Gully Boy or Article 15. As individuals, it is important for them to speak out on behalf of the community from which they benefited and which earned them recognition and laurels “. Srishty said.
“When Ranveer Singh was asked about his political views because they had appropriated the catchphrase ‘Azaadi’ in Gully Boy, he said, in an interview, that he is ‘apathetic towards politics.’ This is where the industry fails to the people of India. “
The death of two Dalit women after they were allegedly gang-raped in Hathras and Balrampur in Uttar Pradesh has caused a rage across the country, with hundreds and thousands of protesters taking to the streets to demonstrate against the “increasing incidence” of crimes from caste in the country. country.
“It is completely unfair for all these people to make a film about us and then not speak up when the Dalit community is going through a lot of pain,” added Srishty.
The young Dalit activist, a native of rural Bihar, said that TIME magazine named Ayushmann among the 100 most influential people of 2020 in the world for making socially engaged cinema, but when his “influential” voice is needed most, the actor is silent.
Ayushmann was featured on Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2020 list alongside revolutionary people like Shaheen Bagh’s Bilkis. During the Article 15 promotion, he spoke of the oppressed and appeared to be the most caste-sensitive Savarna in the world. India. Role of a higher caste savior in a film about caste-based sexual violence, but when he published his statement on the Hathras case, he did not even mention the caste of the victim. This is nothing but hypocrisy. make a movie about caste-based sexual violence and keep quiet when your voice is really needed. “
Other than Swara Bhasker, Richa Chadha, Zeeshan Ayyub and Sayani Gupta, not many Bollywood celebrities have acknowledged the alleged role of caste in the Hathras and Balrampur cases while condemning them.
यह आग हमारे दिलों में जलाई है उत्तर प्रदेश प्रशासन की क्रूरता ने। यह आग जलती रहनी चाहिए।कारवाँ रुकना नहीं चाहिए। ग़ुस्सा कम नहीं होना चाहिए।आज शाम पाँच बजे जंतर मंतर पहुँचे- सरकार को ज़िम्मेदार ठहराने, उससे इस्तीफ़ा माँगने।
Another Dalit activist and aspiring actor, Jyotsna Siddharth, who is also the founder of the Dalit Feminism Archive, an intersectional and multidisciplinary community center for documenting Dalit feminism in India and South Asia, said that an actor’s work is not over. after making a social movie, he said. or it must go further because, otherwise, it would be just “a performance”.
“I find this very scary,” he said, before adding: “When you look at Hollywood, there are celebrities who identify with a certain cause. And, when you look at our Bollywood industry, they have no commitment to society in any way. I am not saying that they should raise their voices against the castes, although they should, but that they identify with some cause at least. Do they not have any commitment or social responsibility?
“It’s great that they’re making socially relevant movies, but they need to go beyond acting in those movies and using their privilege. They just don’t feel responsible enough to society because why would they? They have comfortable homes and lives. They constantly talk about their personal journey and their struggles to succeed as an actor, not understanding that the struggle itself is rooted in caste, class, and gender location. “
Jyotsna said she is angry to see Bollywood celebrities stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, which campaigns against racism, discrimination and violence against blacks but does not condemn caste-based atrocities in their own country.
“When the Black Lives Matter movement came about, how many Bollywood celebrities actually spoke out about caste violence in India. It infuriates me because as an aspiring Dalit actress I feel like I can find my own space in this industry that refuses to understand the caste system and recognize that they are the same perpetrators of this system and they are feeding off this system because it is giving them certain privileges and benefits. Someone has to die and go through this violence here for them to be against it. “
Echoing a similar sentiment, Srishty said: “Priyanka Chopra Jonas, who is also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador to the world, has made a career in the West talking about diversity and race. It would be quite hypocritical for her to identify structural discrimination in The West, but not India. Hollywood stars and pop stars are leading the way in any kind of protest, but Bollywood stars will only copy their lifestyle and movies, not the things they stand for. “
so Chopra Jonas has finally spoken. but he did not mention the word “caste” or “dalit”. try not to talk about race when a black atrocity comes to light, and see how quickly you get canceled there! pic.twitter.com/MPHkcg0wYz
– Agatha Srishtie 🌸 #DALITLIVESMATTER (@SrishtyRanjan) September 30, 2020
Srishty said that even though he understands why some Bollywood stars choose not to speak out on social or political issues, especially given the ongoing “witch hunt” against the film industry, he believes they still have “the power” to change narratives and change political discourse.
“Movie stars enjoy great influence in the country. This makes it imperative for them to speak out on behalf of the people who adore them. And, in a tumultuous situation like the one India has been through in recent years, how Can you disengage from the same audience that has helped you get where you are? “
