Political parties are attempting to influence voters ‘ selections through film as the largest voter in history does so from April 19 to June 1, 2024, in India.
The former Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP, seeking a second term in office under the command of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has deployed the method of film, more than others, to distribute the group’s goals and ideas.
India is portrayed by the BJP as a Hindu state. Films that support the BJP ideology are publicly supported by the Modi government, especially when they are effectively scheduled to premiere in theaters before the elections. ” Swatantrya Veer Savarkar“, a film on an ardent advocate of a simply Hindu society, was released a few weeks before polling begins for the 2024 votes.
With a base of over 1,500 releases annually and a global audience that spans the globe, India’s entertainment film industry is a complicated behemoth. It is a highly popular medium of communication also for political parties thanks to its meticulously choreographed dance routines, clever lyrics, wonderful dialogue, and historic and religious imagery.
American common film has a lengthy history, one that dates back before Indian independence. In my 2009 text Celluloid Deities: The Visual Society of Cinema and Politics in South India, I documented how visual imagery was used to create a noble aura around social figures in Tamil Nadu, a state in southern India.
The association between politicians and film made it the main force behind a number of charismatic officials ‘ long jobs, some of them writers and film makers, and others of the industry’s leading actors and actresses. Since the 1980s, it has also started a trend of using cinematic means to catch voters ‘ attention.
Mobilizing picture fans for political campaigns
A large crowd draws in to watch movies in theaters, which is an exciting and enjoyable experience. The transfer of highly anticipated films is similar to a festival, as sociolog Lakshmi Srinivas writes in her 2016 book” House Full.” The audience’s enthusiasm as they recite the conversations, dancing to the songs, and slam stars as they appear on screen is what is most striking.
In an American environment, movie’s influence extends from the movie theater to the city in the form of advertisements, style and movie music that dominate open spaces. According to art historian Shalini Kakar, the spectacle of cinema evokes passionate responses from viewers that resemble religious sentiment. She discusses case studies of movie enthusiasts who have built temples to their favorite celebrities in both residential and commercial spaces. These fans organize public celebrations and perform religious ceremonies for their favorite stars.
But more often, fans are part of a large and vocal collective. According to media theorist S. V. Srinivas, movie fans can either influence or overthrow stars ‘ careers and lives. These film fans can take active part in a star’s political campaigns if the star decides to enter politics. However, if the star does something that the fans find objectionable, they can just as easily turn down his films and even end his career.
An alignment of cinema and politics
More than any other Indian film industry, Tamil Nadu’s has evolved in sync with regional political and social developments since the 1940s. Through the medium of entertainment movies, the ideals of Tamil nationalism, a political movement that altered the course of history in Tamil Nadu, were powerfully communicated. The actors who were frequently pictured with these movies were physically present alongside politicians at party gatherings.
In my research, I discovered that using identical advertising media helped Tamil Nadu’s relationship between cinema and politics. Political parties regularly commissioned advertisers to produce” star images” of politicians. The hand-painted plywood cutout was a popular advertising medium for both the party industry and party attendees. These full- length portraits, 20 feet to 100 feet in height, featured charismatic leaders of Tamil nationalist parties such as M. Karunanidhi, a prolific and influential scriptwriter, and J. Jayalalithaa, a famous film star turned politician.
Although these political portraits were intended to be realistic rather than melodramatic, they had a style and size similar to that of a movie star. In this way, they contributed to transferring the influence of the movie star image to the leader’s image.
I argued that these advertisements played an important role in visualizing, and shaping, the identity politics of Tamil nationalism.
Millions of people watched these pictures. When these vibrantly colored portraits of political figures and movie stars soaring above the skyline like celestial beings, they appeared side by side in public spaces. Often, the images became the focus of adulation. They were feted and garlanded, people danced, burst crackers, cheered and crowded around these images, and posed next to them for photographs.
The charismatic Tamil nationalist activists pioneered the art of combining the power of political portraiture with the divine aura of icons in their advertisements.
Cinema’s role in divisive politics
Under Modi’s leadership, three themes emerge in a cluster of films that favor the BJP’s goals and policies and are endorsed by the party: claiming credit for welfare initiatives, instilling Hindu nationalist beliefs in society, and heightening tensions between the Hindu majority and Muslim minority communities.
For example, a film released in 2017,” Toilet: Ek Prem ki Katha”, or” Toilet: A Love Story”, tells the story of a couple whose marriage starts to fall apart over the lack of a toilet within the home. Viewers are informed at the beginning of the film that while Mahatma Gandhi fought for a clean environment, it is Modi who is putting money into the construction of toilets all over the country.
The historical legacy of right-wing Hindu nationalist organizations and their leaders are presented in another series of films in the biopic genre. ” PM Narendra Modi“, which reminded voters of the prime minister’s rise from poverty, was scheduled for release just before the 2019 elections. However, the independent Election Commission of India, which is responsible for ensuring free and fair elections, decided to limit the release of the movie to after the elections.
Politically divisive movies are a third, more troubling subgenre. The scripts for these movies dramatize highly biased narratives that cast Hindus as the victims while portraying Muslims as the bad guys. They are based on historically charged actual events that have occurred in communities of Hindu and Muslim communities.
The” Kashmir Files” exhibit, which is well-known, depicts the widespread exodus of Hindus from the north Indian state of Kashmir in the early 1990s when they were targeted by a pro-Pakistani Muslim uprising. The prime minister’s own approval of the movie, which demonizes Muslims and depicts them carrying out incredibly barbaric and cruel deeds, is one of the film’s public endorsed films.
It was unspoken in the interviews with the filmmakers and distributors who participated in my research that it was impossible to accurately predict whether a movie would win at the box office, as it would happen with the results of upcoming elections.
However, it would be fair to say that the BJP’s hat trick was largely driven by a clever use of film as a platform for party propaganda.
At the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Preminda Jacob is an adjunct professor of art history and museum studies.
This article was republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.