CCould be a propaganda art? This question has divided critics, artists, and audiences. Leni Riefenstahl’s films glorifying Nazism and Soviet poster art are often cited as propaganda that transcends its purpose of becoming permanent art. Recently, this debate has flared up again with the success of Aditya Dhar’s Hindi film stalwartWhile critics have criticized it for blending real-life events with fiction to advance an ultra-nationalist narrative, defenders have praised its technical finesse, deep storytelling, and raw intensity, suggesting it goes beyond simply delivering a message, Asim Siddiqui and Sudhanva Deshpande Discuss art and publicity in a conversation moderated by Anuj KumarEdited excerpts:
Many works of art, books, theater and films are often called propaganda. How exactly would you define promotion?
Asim Siddiqui: In the fullest sense, you could say that all art is propaganda. This means that whether it is cinematic art, literature, or poetry, it is talking about certain ideas. But these days, when we use the word ‘propaganda’, we are using the word in a very specific sense, where a filmmaker, writer or artist has a clear agenda of selectively using facts, ideas and perhaps images to persuade and persuade a group of people to accept a particular point of view. It nakedly promotes raw emotions. And by doing this it tries to create public opinion.
Sudhanva Deshpande: Promotion must be seen in the context of the broader ecosystem. Promotion is not usually something one person does alone. There are organized forces behind this act which is seen as propaganda.
would you say stalwart Has the publicity been as good as many believe? How does it compare kashmir files And story of keralaWhich are seen as blatant propaganda?
Asim Siddiqui:It’s definitely better than those movies. It tries to tell a story and create characters, but I’d place it within the broader ecosystem that the other two films are a part of.
Sudhanva Deshpande: In the Hindi film industry, there has been a concerted effort by Hindutva forces to take control of the film industry in some ways, and this is done officially as well as through non-state actors – trolls and vigilantes on the ground, state institutions, and networks funding, financing, screening films. For example, when kashmir fileIt came to light that in many BJP states, government institutions gave leave to their employees or bought tickets for them. The film was also being promoted heavily on social media. In this way the commercial success of the film was decided. But despite this event, films like kashmir files and now stalwart Commercially there are still exceptions, in the sense that many films propagating the Hindutva viewpoint do not perform well.
Asim SiddiquiAlso, you would not have thought that many of these films would get National Awards. [The Kashmir Files] Got the award for national unity, which seems ironic.
What is the difference between propaganda in the service of power and propaganda that questions power?
Sudhanva Deshpande:Each artist and artwork must decide where they stand in the larger scheme of things. Do they think that the existing status quo, power relations in the society are fine and need to be strengthened? Or do they believe the status quo needs to change? In other words, do the poor and those who have been marginalized for centuries also need to become stakeholders in society? Now, if you believe that, no doubt your art will argue that too. But that’s not propaganda; You are going against the basic nature of power and the values ​​and beliefs established in the society. On the other hand, if you believe that, say, race is okay, that the vast majority should be considered somewhat less than human, then you are working in favor of the established ideology.
There is no Indian Muslim character in this stalwartIs the film still addressing them in some sense?
Asim Siddiqui:There are some dog whistles in the movie. At one moment in the film, a character talks about Pakistan and says that it is not our ‘enemy number one’. It says that you have many enemies within India and of course, there are different conditions for them. In this sense, it is also part of the ecosystem that we have discussed. There are no Muslim characters who are positive, and you can even consider the absent characters; They are not named, but you can hear those dog whistles.
Sudhanva Deshpande: Isolating Muslims and portraying Muslims as enemies within or negative characters is nothing new. In embers (1992), the Muslim don’s family is shown as less than human. There is a clear connection between the depiction and the overall atmosphere of Islamophobia that began to form with the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and the demand for the demolition of the Babri Masjid in the mid-1980s. And as it reached its peak, you see more such films being made.
There is a section that believes that the current nationalist propaganda is a reaction to the cinema of the 1950s to 1970s, which was inspired by the Progressive Writers’ Movement. And if Mehboob Khan and Raj Kapoor carried forward the idea of ​​Nehruvian India, films like Uri And stalwart Represents the ‘new’ India.
Sudhanva Deshpande: This is completely wrong, a false equivalence drawn by the right wing. I can’t think of a single film inspired by the progressive writers’ movement that actively sought to make or encourage its audience to feel hatred towards a particular caste or community. I don’t remember anyone in the 1950s saying that he was afraid of making films because he faced attacks from the state or society. Yes, there was emergency in the 1970s. It was a dark period in Indian history when films story of chair Was banned, and it was terrible. But overall he was an exception. The flip side of the hype of this moment is about all the things that have been prevented from getting made. For example, the film on Jyotirao Phule required the removal of caste names of caste groups. My filmmaker and writer friends tell me that now you have to deliberately include scenes and dialogues that provoke anger to create a social media storm around a film. This is done so that people who do not usually go to watch the film can watch it.
Some say that they have enjoyed the preaching work despite being skeptical of its message. Would you say it is ethical to appreciate these artistic qualities, given that the purpose of the work is to manipulate your beliefs?
Asim Siddiqui: There may be some parts in a movie or book that you may like. It’s not unusual for the audience to clap for a bad guy in a movie. Sometimes a movie can have a kind of macabre charm. When you are engrossed in a movie, you can enjoy the scenes, songs, images, and acting. The discussion that arises from the film comes later. I liked it rich man in parts, but also found it highly problematic.
Sudhanva Deshpande:Art is a complex business that operates on many levels. cinder This is a movie I grew up with. I like the film, but I don’t support the idea of ​​benevolent, patriarchal feudalism at its core: the character of Thakur and his being the protector of the village. Having said that, it is also the case that you may often watch a movie whose message you support, but you find the movie a bit boring.
Can propaganda inspire critical thinking?
Asim Siddiqui:Critical thinking can never end. It leads us to seek out old movies and books, to see and read them anew, to wonder why we liked them and, sometimes, to question why we rejected them in the first place.
Sudhanva Deshpande: The more you argue against something, the more curious you will be about it. I come from a family where no one reads or speaks Urdu. As I was growing up, language was never a part of my world. But when I was in college, a complete anti-Urdu sentiment was being instigated. I became curious to learn about the language and started reading Urdu poets and writers in Devanagari script.