Indian Cinema and Dalit Representation

In India, casteism touches 1.35 billion people. It affects 1 billion people. It affects 800 million people badly. It enslaves human dignity of 500 million people. It is a measure of destruction, pillage, drudgery, servitude, bondage, unaccounted rape, massacre, arson, incarceration, police brutality, and loss of moral virtuosity for 300 million Indian Untouchables.

-Suraj Yenge in Caste Matters

Suraj Yengde in his book ‘Caste Matters’ says, “Untouchability remains a lifeline of India’s present”. The way Dalit identity has been erased has led to their dehumanization. The gap got even widened with the lack of representation in culture and interpersonal relationships. This as a whole has resulted in a lack of empathy and disregard for atrocities.

Bollywood And Dalit Narrative

In the year 2019, ‘Article 15’ by Anubhav Sinha was critically acclaimed for being the first mainstream Bollywood film that focused on atrocities inflicted on Dalit communities. Well, the critics as well as the audience were too quick to judge the film. They titled it as a film that exposed caste prejudice while uncovering the reality of India. However, when we closely analyze the film, we see the stereotypical portrayal of Dalits rather than a realistic one. And in the end, it does take a Brahmanical savior route. We see the protagonist Ayan Ranjan (Ayushman Khurrana) is an outsider and fights the caste system. But the reality is quite the opposite as in most cases, Dalit struggles have been faced and taken up by Dalits. I do agree that taking up the issue of caste (a not-so-discussed issue) in the film is revolutionary. But it is not sufficient to mention caste atrocities, the film never addresses how the caste system can be destroyed. This can be called a film made by an upper-caste filmmaker for the upper caste audiences.

According to Dalit critiques, it comforts the upper caste audience to see that an upper caste (protagonist) is liberating the Dalits. Thus, being a hero. But does it end discriminatory social system or upper-caste privileges?

Historically, Indian cinema has ignored and erased the stories of Dalits and the marginalized communities. This cannot be called an unintentional practice. We have all been audience to Dalit characters (as few they are), who underwent casteist undertones onscreen. The scenario did change with Neeraj Ghaywan’s ‘Masaan’ when made an attempt to do away with stereotypes with the character of Deepak (Vicky Kaushal). It did depict the life of a Dalit in an optimistic light. But in a country where caste discrimination remains an issue, Hindi films have failed to include it in their cinematic narrative.

Stories Of the Marginalized in Indian Cinema

One need not be a cinephile or critic to understand that Dalit representation in Bollywood fails to move from the upper caste gaze. We see it in ‘Article 15’, probably the only well-acclaimed Hindi film to have a portrayal of the marginalized communities. However, when we look at the other film industries, we see an extremely commendable attempt at showcasing the experiences of the marginalized.

Who can forget Nagraj Manjule’s ‘Sairaat’ (Marathi) starring Rinku Rajguru and Akash Thosar, beautifully shows the feudal structure in rural Maharashtra. The inter-caste romance between Archana and Parshaya ends on a tragic note which gives the audiences the caste reality of new India. However, ‘Dhadak’ the attempt of Dharma productions to remake the movie was a massive disaster, as they ignored the caste perspective and made it solely a class issue.

Even the National award-winning movie, ‘Sahaj Pather Goppo’ (Bengali), by Manas Mukul is a heart-wrenching story of Gopal and Chotu. The film will indeed make you question the privileges of the upper caste. When it comes to the struggles of the marginalized groups it is hardly the upper caste who help them, but it is their optimism and Dalit power that liberates them.

Just like other film industries, the Malayalam and Tamil films are no exception. Time and again the actors on screen and the filmmakers have moved away from representing Dalit stories. The caste of the protagonist has been reinforced even if it wasn’t necessary for the plot. However, lately in ‘Thondimuthalam Driksakshiyum’ (Malayalam), the leads have an inter-caste marriage. Films did have inter-religious marriages like ‘Thattathin Marayathu’ (Malayalam), showing the love between a Muslim girl and a Hindu boy. But the representation of inter-caste marriages is comparatively quite less. A movie like, ‘Kammatti Paadam' (Malayalam) tells stories of the marginalized communities and their realities. These do bring a change in the way people view cinema and give an accurate socio-political perspective.

Tamil films like, ‘Asuran’ by Vetrimaaran and ‘Karnan’ by Mari Selvaraj can be called iconic and revolutionary in putting forth the Dalit narrative. Both the films have Dhanush as the protagonist who portrays the struggles between the oppressed and the oppressors. At the same time, what I found commendable about these films was the representation of women characters. Be it Draupathi (Rajisha Vijayan) in Karnan, or Pachaiyammal (Manju Warrier) in Asuran, are strong characters fighting against their oppressors. ‘Karnan’ opens with the shot of a young girl on the verge of death while nobody stops for help. The camera rises to the top, probably showcasing the view of the Almighty from above. As they say in the movie, the girl dies and becomes Goddess, ‘Kaattu Pechi’. ‘Asuran’ based on Poomani’s acclaimed novel ‘Vekkai’ will pierce your heart as you see the helplessness of the Sivasamy family. These movies can be called powerful stories of the fight against oppression.

Is This Enough?

Although we have seen some great movies that have put forward a strong representation of Dalits, the question still remains. Is this enough? The answer is surely a ‘no’, this indeed is not enough to portray the voice of the voiceless. The Brahmanical supremacy in Indian cinema still remains, it still does have dominance over the films. The reason could be the upper-class masses, who are the largest consumers of the films, rather than to whom the movies cater. Especially, when it comes to Bollywood this applies accurately as the movies are directed towards a particular audience. As I’ve mentioned in my earlier blogs too, that when it comes to filmmakers, they do enjoy creative freedom but at the same time this freedom comes with a responsibility towards society. The new generation audience does appreciate good storylines and performances; hence it is time filmmakers engage with the caste discourse.

Image Source:

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