I know that Padmaavat controversy has now become a pretty corroded topic to discuss; but still, I felt like sharing what I wrote a couple of weeks ago. I came to this point of discussion after reading various articles over the web.
Anyone who has not been underground these past few days is well aware of the controversies regarding the movie Padmavat and its release in India. There was a huge uproar surrounding the movie. The matter went to the Supreme Court and even after its reprimand, the demagogues took the matter into their own hands and decided to wreak havoc anywhere and everywhere they thought right. Vehicles were burnt, people might have been injured, the lead actress was threatened with dire consequences and abuses were thrown on everyone involved.
This makes me wonder where our mighty nation is headed to. It is rightly said that we can find the level of people’s intelligence and their character by listening to what they discuss about. Small men discuss people, average men discuss events, great men discuss ideas. So, are we a nation of small-minded, hidebound people? There are so many things happening in our country: rapes, murders, things of far greater magnitude than a meager movie. There are so many things we could actually protest about – we could protest about people’s rights: their right to live, their right to stay safe. But, instead, we decide to encroach upon the freedom of expression.
Rising Intolerance is the underlying issue
There are multifold problems with this. It is not just that people decided to take umbrage over a movie and not think about more serious, more pressing issues that demand our attention urgently. It is not that people thought an infraction on someone’s freedom of expression was alright. It is this environment of rising intolerance we are living in. The idea that anybody who is not doing things our way is wrong is gripping our society and we are living in a live ticking bomb of rigid intolerance that threatens to explode every time our cocoon of regularity is even slightly disturbed.
Let us adopt tolerance
It is a huge world we live in and it should not come as a surprise to us that it is not possible that everyone holds the same point of view as us. Why is it so difficult to be more accepting of our fellow humans and the way they choose to lead their lives? What makes us believe that we have the right to pass judgement over people, judgement over whom they choose to love and how they choose to live? In no situation, with no means, in no manner do we hold the right to force our beliefs onto another.
If we want to live in peace, we must learn the art of tolerance. It is imperative that we begin to treat other humans more gently, with more understanding and kindness. Everybody is going through travails we are unaware of and the last thing anybody wants to deal with a condemnation from society. Tolerance is a political, legal and societal requirement otherwise intolerance will take humanity to a grave. Tolerance is the key to molding a better society.
Over to you
We might disagree with what someone else has to say but we should make it a point to defend to the death their right to say it. The Padmaavat controversy is a never-ending debate and I believe that there are many aspects of Padmaavat controversy about which people have no idea. Let us know about your view about the Padmaavat controversy in the comments section below.
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