PSA - The Kerala Story saga
I miss the innocence of religion from my childhood. I grew up a Hindu, devout though not fervent, immersed in her music, art and dance, enchanted by her stories. As I grew older, learnt more about other religions, my doubts about the veracity of Hinduism grew and I slowly drifted into atheism, but I never lost my love of those stories - how could you? There is magic in those stories, magic, kink, passion, fury, exquisite love, excruciating pain, deepest anguish and supreme joy. To this day, it is one of my great pleasures, finding some unsuspecting person and enthralling them with one or other wonderfully bizarre tale; of how Ganesh got his elephant head, or the dubious morality of the villains, heroes and Gods embroiled in the Mahabharata, or about the demon King who ruled so justly, he made the very Gods jealous.
In no doubt very rose-tinted glasses, the memory of Hinduism in my childhood is the idea of an open, welcoming religion, comfortable with its own flaws, curious about the failings of men, women, Gods and Goddesses, keen on learning, on including, on absorbing, on swallowing the teachings from other religions and ideologies to create its own meta-story, crafting localised customs that adapted to the people, culture and religion of an area. I remember distinctly getting the blessings of a local Pastor and Imam before embarking on a childhood temple pilgrimage. I know and love a devout Hindu, who is also a great believer in St. George. That is a thing to love, this amorphous, indistinct, blurriness, the fluid lack of ideology or certainty. So while I found atheism, I was never ashamed of my Hindu heritage and culture, quick to tell stories, to celebrate the soulful music, wondrous art, scintillating architecture or thrilling dance that came from such a rich, ancient cultural heritage. It never felt exclusionary or elite, rather an all-encompassing melting pot of many ideas, many thoughts, many many ideals and non-ideals.
Things have changed though, through the rise of the BJP and Narendra Modi’s ascent to Prime Ministership in 2014, this wonder and awe has slowly seeped away, and creeping into its place is a primitive, right-wing, fundamentalist Hindu ideology, with no space or place for any other religion, thought or creed apart from the blind worship of the Saffron cult, of Hindutva, of the idea that Indian equates to "Hindu-ness". This regression, the shameful descent into propaganda is all too often (for my tastes) reflected in the media that comes out of India, most recently in The Kerala Story. Ostensibly based on true stories, it has crested a wave of controversy and arrived for our viewing (dis?)pleasure. I won't rehash the controversy, do Google it if it interests you, but I thought it worth my while to share some choice reviews for any who end up watching it.
The Indian Express - The Kerala Story movie review: A poorly-made, poorly-acted rant
1 out of 5 stars
The film itself is nothing but a poorly-made, poorly-acted rant which is not interested in interrogating the social complexities of Kerala, an India state proud of its multi-religious, multi-ethnic identity. All it is intent upon is creating the most simplistic, paper-thin characters to tell us that Kerala is in danger because its innocent, naïve Hindu and Christian girls are being swayed by evil Muslim men, and radicalised to the point of no return.
NDTV - The Kerala Story Review: The Writing Is Consistently Cringeworthy, The Acting Is No Better
0.5 out of 5 stars
Professedly based on "many true stories", The Kerala Story, directed by Sudipto Sen, isn't really interested in the truth as a whole. Taking the cases of a handful of missing girls, it spins a yarn that would have us believe that Kerala has contributed thousands of foot soldiers to ISIS over the years. Needless to say, that claim isn't backed up with either evidence or genuine concern.
No more than a lengthy WhatsApp forward in the guise of a movie, The Kerala Story would have been deemed a passable vehicle for a half-baked conspiracy theory had the film not been as laughably inept, both in terms of its making and its tonalities. It cannot by any stretch of the imagination be accused of being a balanced investigation.
Scroll.in - ‘The Kerala Story’ review: All about Islamophobia
The movie’s larger target is Islam itself, presented here as a religion whose very value system primes its followers for extremist thought.
What makes me sad is that all the interviews and defence I've seen from the filmmakers suggest a core belief in the truth of their claims. Numbers don't really matter they say, there is a core truth to this story. There is no doubt a story to tell about recruitment into terrorist organisations, a nuanced story that explores the milieu that enables it, the despair that drives it, the fervour that sustains it. This ham-fisted, Islamophobic propaganda, is not that story.
I fear what it means for India when people willingly believe such farce. What will remain of the India I remember as the tide rises gleefully, drowning us in a sea of Saffron?
