India`s Daughter, a scream from a sister half way across the world

The ghost of 2012 Delhi Gang rape is here to haut the nation again, making people cringe and boil with a sense of angst at the same time.  

Government`s response

The government's decision to put a restrain on the documentary is hardly a surprise but not totally unjustified. The state has played its part, and done that pretty fine. Although the case is pending in Supreme Court, out of the six accused, four are on a death row, one has committed suicide and one is in juvenile prison. For the government, the film is giving fuel to a fire it has put out the best way it could, within its capability. The Justice Verma Report and the subsequent Criminal Law Amendment Ordinance 2013 are proof that the problem lies not with the state but the society. When a red faced Rajnaath Singh says that the government is going to take action against BBC, then he is talking more as a member of a shamed society whose shortcomings are being rubbed into the face, than a statesman who is on a banning binge.

Freedom of speech, really?

This is not a usual case of freedom of speech or artistic freedom. Rape is a very sensitive issue and can't be dealt like any other issue under the umbrella term, Freedom of Speech. The point is, will the film bring a change, serve a purpose?

There have been a lot of documentaries and films about the increasing rape culture in India along with other pressing issues relating to women in the past which have come and gone without occupying any substantial space in the media or people`s thought processes. None has resulted in the decline of rape cases or even the initiation of a dialogue at the ground level. Sex is still a taboo in India and what is required is a need to start a dialogue, free and meaningful.

The Big Sister calls

The buzz created around India`s Daughter is majorly because it's a BBC production and can be considered as a third person`s perspective. But has Leslee Udwin done justice to the subject of a universal social evil, by narrowing down her study on a specific yet in no way insignificant atrocity? Could her inquiry into the matter, as an international commentator been more holistic if she had taken a broader worldwide view, included the tussle between genders and an underlying primordial animal behavior in such cases, be it in Steubenville or France?  The documentary seems to be looking for a black cat in a room with lights turned off.  Or just saying that there is a black cat in the room.

According to a BBC survey, 230 women are raped in UK everyday and less than 1 in a 100 people get convicted for the same. Yet Leslee Udwin`s decision to give voice to her sisters, so territorially and culturally removed from her seems weird, almost resembling a white burden of some sort. Maybe the brutality of the rape had attracted her imagination, which is well explored in the film. But isn't this falling into the downward spiral of sensationalism in Journalism? Choosing an event more shocking than others ( yet in no way the most shocking, she could have found even more pathetic realities here or elsewhere) based on its content quality?

Solution, precipitate or nothing at all?   

But the BBC television director Danny Cohen has said that the film, ' Has a strong public interest of crating awareness about  a global problem.' and the inductive logic of the documentary gives some strong causes to rape as a phenomenon, like changing economy , patriarchy and social deprivation, but the solutions it brings to the discussion are quite generic and not unprecedented ' should bes'  like education and changing people`s mindset. More than a critical inquiry into an ignominious social evil, the film is a multi-narrative of the blood curding incident on December 16, 2012, which certainly makes the head hang but doesn't bring anything concrete to the table. Shame has never deterred a criminal from a crime nor has repetition changed perceptions. The interview with one of the main accused in the case is proof enough how difficult it is to change someone`s view point. However the film has undoubtedly reinforced viewer`s opinion by giving it an authoritative BBC kind of voice.

Postscript

Will the Indian society or the world at large learn anything from the heart rendering reality of Jyoti Singh? Will it make those who need to introspect, wait for a moment in their lives and think again? Or will it just make rape the new starving kid in Somalia human interest story and after a while the desensitized viewer will forget the worth of Mr. and Mrs. Singh`s tears?  

The documentary is a definite reminder, a shocker,  that the world has yet not forgotten about Nirbahya, even though most people have moved on to other issues, to different pandals at Jantar Mantar. In the end the relevance of the film can only be established on the basis of weather it incites frustration or leads to a constructive dialogue in the society. 

Bricks and stones can break your bones but words can hurt as hell : Poetry Slam in Delhi

Pen is mightier than the sword and words are more powerful than punches. An ensemble of poets and artists in Delhi are proving just that by voicing their opinion through poems.

Delhi Poetry Slam(DelSlam),which came into existence in December 2013, gives a platform to various 'word performers' from poets to hip-hop lyricists. Slam is a world phenomenon in poetry which began in the 90s and has revitalized poetry recitals since, usually considered drab and boring. The new form, aggressive and vocal, is mostly a personal narrative of things unsaid or unsung.

The recitals try to combine poetry with theater, dance and music, making poetry recitation more appealing. A recent video of Rene Verma giving a much needed verbal bashing to Yo Yo Honey Singh through her rap poetry was part of the monthly poetry recitation event organized by the group.

Apart from giving space to Indian poets and artists, the sessions also  attempt to create a global poetry culture in Delhi by showcasing foreign artists. According to Saumya Chaudhary, manager at Delhi Slam Poetry, creating ' Multiculturalism' is a big underlying idea of the whole project. Regarding the content of the shows, she said, 'The poets talk about everything from personal to political. We have poets taking about falling in love to searching for identity. It's all very diverse.'

Usually the recitals have a planned 45 odd minutes of featured artists followed by an open mike session which invites the members of the audience to perform.  

         

'In US, performances considered best mostly display angst. But there are a lot of underlying emotions within anger as well, which need to be explored. There can be fear beneath anger, and insecurity beneath fear.' says Nichole Sumner, the mentor at DelSlam. Having been an activist in the US, she now emcees DelSlam sessions apart from organizing workshops on poetry in schools and colleges, 'To help give a voice to children and young adults.'

DelSlam provides a non judgmental space to people who have something to say and seek an opportunity to say it. It is a kind of space which the minorities, political or sexual, can use freely to talk about their reality, along with mainstream rebels and romantics.