Just a few days back, I was in Bithoor — the place that took centre-stage during the revolt of 1857 (if you still find it difficult to remember the context…remember Nana Sahib, Tatya Tope and the Sepoy Mutiny from your NCERT textbooks). What struck me most about the place was not the fort or its historical relevance but the general lack of apathy that for some reason is a malaise that we all Indians share at some level.
If you’re wondering what I mean, let me explain. You see, the original fort of Bithoor (which is what I wanted to see when I visited the site) for some reason is completely blocked from view and relatively obscure. In fact, I actually had to peep through the holes in the brick-wall to catch a glimpse of the forgotten ruins…as I wondered about the era gone by…which is what prompted the current article.
After all, it is a legitimate question, which begs to be answered…why are we Indians, Bollywood in particular, so apathetic to our history (and I am not even referring to lovestruck lovers carving their initials inside the very hearts of history).
It was only recently that Sanjay Leela Bhansali was attacked by the Rajput Karni Sena workers on the sets of Padmavati, a Bollywood period drama film that revolves around the love story between the Mughal sultan, Aladdin Khilji and the Rajputana Rani Padmavati. Even though, the duelling duo has since then reached a reluctant truce, it has made several people ask just what is the thin line separating poetic or creative license and historical accuracy. [After all, there is no concrete historical evidence that would credibly prove that rani Padmavati herself actually existed…let alone, a siege that was the result of a lovestruck king’s lust for the lovely queen.]
Of course, distortion of facts is not a new allegation for Bollywood, which it often counters with the same ‘freedom of expression’ argument. Truth be told, I am sure there are many of you who would agree with them. After all, isn’t democracy all about ‘freedom of expression’?!? [And the answer to that question is a resounding ‘yes’
Research, which was published in the journal Psychological Science, has already found that motion pictures are an incredibly powerful teaching tool since it has the ability to leave lasting imprints in the minds of people. In fact, alluding to the power of this medium, research has found that pupils are more likely to believe movies as compared to their teachers or textbooks. Thus, given its potency, it would seem that we as a country would demand greater exercise of caution, on how the Bollywood uses this media…especially when teaching our young about history and historical events.
In fact, according to lead researcher Andrew Butler of Washington University, “when information in the film was consistent with information in the text, watching the film clips increased correct recall by about 50 per cent relative to reading the text alone. In contrast, when information in the film directly contradicted the text, people often falsely recalled the misinformation portrayed in the film, sometimes as much as 50 per cent of the time.”
What this research effectively proves is that immense responsibility lies on the shoulders of movie-makers, who in a way are the chroniclers of history…what they’ll make will become part of the historical narrative. Ergo…if they distort the truth, the distortion itself becomes the truth…(and that, ladies and gentlemen, is something we all just cannot afford). Thus, we all want the truth and nothing but the truth!!!
