This thought struck me when i was watching Mani Ratnam's 'BOMBAY' (I confess that i am too late to talk about this movie, but the truth is that i saw it for the first time only now). As the movie progressed, i was gradually absorbed into the complex web of social structure India is weaved into. The movie ended in about 3 hours - but my thought train had just started.
I was simply over-awed by the power that media wields. If a 3 hour movie can influence our minds and at least make us sit up and think beyond our self, about our society, think what can be achieved if media is harnessed the right way over a period. By media, i don't mean movies alone - it includes the whole spectrum of TV, news papers, online content, etc (and of course, this includes the blogging society. It's this thought that made me rethink on my blogging - I quit blogging soon after getting a job.)
Now, jumping into our topic, i sincerely feel that the power of media if properly harnessed can be effectively used in combating the social and economic issues that we Indians face now.
Let's list down what plagues India -
1. Poverty
2. Social inequality
3. Illiteracy
4. Corruption
5. Poor Sanitation
I limit my focus to the above 5 as the rest can be easily tackled if the above are taken care of.
Of these Pancha Paavis, we can single out Illiteracy as the primary culprit. I sincerely feel if illiteracy can be tackled, all other issues can be taken care of much more easily. I have discussed about the other issues in another post - here i restrict my writing to illiteracy alone.
At any point of time, at least half of India's population will be hooked to some media or the other. The literate population (61.3% in 2002) would follow newspapers, news channels and a smal proportion of that - the online media. The other India's favorite media will be TV and cinema.
The political history in South India and in some North Indian states holds proof of the power that cinema (read media) holds on the masses. It has created matinee idols who rose to become their leaders(whether that benefited the masses is a different question).
Other media have also in their capacity been able to sway the minds of the people. Sting operations of Tehelka and other news channels have been the talk of the nation over the years. So, has been our People's President's website and social networking sites.
Now, my thought is this - why not use these media to educate the masses and there by uplift them?
Movie makers, rather than focusing on commercial viability of their movies should understand the social responsibility they hold. By this, i don't say that there shouldn't be any commercial movies - but, let each movie have some social message which are intertwined into the story so that they are absorbed by the audience gradually ( I agree, any out-right social movie will bomb at the box-office). If this happens, it will be a win-win situation for both the society and the film industry. It's a win for the film industry because there will be a significant rise in the standards of Indian movies; thereby bringing a better face value globally.
News media (including TV channels), over the past few years have been competing with cinema to provide masala content to the audience. If cinema is driven by box-office collections, news and TV media are driven by TRP ratings. As one politician aptly pointed out, "if a wife refuses to give coffee to her husband, it becomes breaking news".
Media should wake up to the reality of the power they wield and help in cleansing the society off the evils that plague our nation. As the nation watches them at any time of the day, as people think what media thinks, as people talk what the media wants them to talk, as people do what media wants them to do, media are nothing short of demi-gods. If they realise their power, they truly can become the messiah of the New India.
~ A concerned Indian
This is a 'scribbling'. Constructive criticism and views are appreciated!
No comments:
Post a Comment