We have entered the terrifying new era of post-truth where objective facts are viewed as irrelevant, or less important than personal beliefs or opinions, and emotional appeals are used to influence public opinion, not just facts but entire histories might be faked. In short, people can believe whatever they want to believe as long as they feel it is right. The term 'post truth' was first coined by Steve Tesich in 1991-1992 to describe the propaganda of the US-dominated NATO powers which was used to balkanize Yugoslavia during the inter-ethnic feuds and violence there and no one was willing to publish his articles.
Movies have the power to change the
perception of the people watching it. Recently movie named Kerala Story has been
released that claims to tell the story of Hindu and Christian women who were
allured to join the Islamic State group has stirred a huge controversy in India.
For instance, the promos of the movie claimed that there are about 32000 women
from Kerala who has misled into joining ISIS. But when the number was fact-checked,
the movie team made it into '3'.
The
US Department of State report revealed that there is a total of 66 known Indian-origin
fighters who were affiliated with ISIS as of NOV 2020. Out of these 13 were
women and only 6 were from Kerala. Yes, You heard it right, only 6. Out of
these 3 were Muslims, out of the rest 2 were Christians and Only 1 was Hindu.
In such wise it turns into a broad propaganda movie on account of its broad generalizations
and gross exaggerations for demonizing the Muslim community as the important
plank for the ruling dispensation.
A
July 2018 study by the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation
(ICSR) at King's College London based on official, academic, and other data
concluded that 41,490 people - 32,809 men, 4,761 women, and 4,640 children -
from 80 countries were affiliated with IS specifically.
There
is no denying fact that religious indoctrination and radicalization are the defacto
reality of our society. It becomes a bigger problem when radicalization depicted
in the movies like Kashmir Files and The Kerala Story is selectively
approached. Indian society has already been engulfed by the ghost of
communalism and in such wise venomous movies it turned into more detrimental to
our social environment. Everyday violence and state violence have become synchronized,
Partly through the law, and partly in extra-legal ways. In fact, at this
juncture, we must all ponder over it and worry about it.
Joseph
Goebbels said “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will
eventually come to believe it. The gross exaggeration of the facts in this
movie proved that it is solely based on Goebbels’s propaganda technique. PM
Modi said ‘The Kerala Story’ shows the ugly truth of terrorism and exposes the
plans of terrorists. And later on, violence erupted on account of this propagandist
movie in GMC, Jammu and when two communities rioted over a social media post on
the movie ‘The Kerala Story’ at Hariharpeth in Akola, Maharashtra and one died
over it. Who must be charged for propagating communal hatred, then?
The
Kerala Story does not want to look at the rear end of these stories. It is not
an endeavor that is willing to lead its audience toward such complexity. The
story of the movie is presented as the absolute truth in a metaphysical
methodology with no serious efforts to understand why such radicalizations take
place. On the contrary, it has the potential to turn the unemployed youth of
our society into monsters.
By: Dheeraj
Bharat.
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