For An Informed Ambedkar Age
Sudhanshu Singh Palasa 1978 is an excellent and rare example of Bahujan culture and agony depicted in mainstream cinema. There have been movies before that have depicted lives of the working class but none depicts their lives as well as culture with explicit truthfulness and a message that is like a ‘fusillade of pistol shots’. …
Shiva Thrishul The film speaks about Bahujan resistance against the dominance of caste feudal lords across generations in a town in Andhra Pradesh. The enslavement of the Bahujan bodies for the political gains of privileged castes, upper-caste exploitation of the Bahujan labour force, the abuse of Bahujan muscle power, deceptive and treacherous nature of the …
Mukesh Kumar Australian director Warwick Thornton’s recently released film Sweet Country, which is making a buzz on the global scene, unfolds the relationship of power and domination within the purview of the colonial settlers’ encounter with the aboriginal people. The film set in the 1920s in the mesmerising landscape of Northern Territory near Alice Springs …
Bobby Kunhu The last time I critiqued a Bachchan starrer was without watching the movie, but this time the hype got me into the theatre to watch Pink. Truth be told, it was also way to spend time with a very close friend’s family. I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy …
Rajesh Rajamani Kabali is a very good movie. (Warning: Spoilers ahead!) The movie effectively borrows several Rajinikant tropes and uses them meaningfully within the script. For example, Rajinikant’s movies almost always begin with an opening song. Where he introduces himself to the audience. No one knows why this is done. It’s quite a bizarre …
Yogesh Maitreya As part of my fieldwork, I had been assigned to spend a year studying one of the prisons in Mumbai. To study the criminal justice system more closely and to know its nuances, I had to attend court trials, visit police stations and localities where mostly Dalit-Bahujans reside. Wherever I went, I came …
Yogesh Maitreya After watching Fandry, I remembered my grandfather who died a few years ago. The movie suddenly brought back his memories alive, in front of my eyes. An ‘untouchable’, his name was Gariba (poor). He used to break stones, all his life, to earn a few rupees with which he raised a large …