(This is the latest edition of the Political Line newsletter curated by Varghese K. George. The Political Line newsletter is India’s political landscape explained every week. You can subscribe here to get the newsletter in your inbox every Friday.)
The changing face of Indian nationalism is now reflected in the country’s movies
Manoj Kumar’s passing and Phule’s film avatar
Actor Manoj Kumar, who passed away earlier this month, represented — through his movies and characters — an idea of India which was popular in the early decades of the Republic. Then, communal amity was a recurring theme, and conflicts were depicted in the broader frame of city versus village and east vs west. India’s social and development challenges that many of his films dealt with were portrayed within the national frame of poverty and distress: roti, kapda, makaan (bread, clothes, housing). My colleague Anuj Kumar takes note of the politics and times of the icon, in this obituary. Manoj Kumar’s nationalist films portrayed the West and Western values as antithetical to Bharatiyata (Indianness).
It is ironic, but also quite understandable how no Indian film today considers the West as antagonistic, while many paint Muslims within the country as a threat to the nation. The broader point is that narrative on nationalism, or any story, needs villains and heroes. This shift in celluloid’s attitude mirrors what happened to Indian nationalism itself.
The anti-colonialism of the national movement was targeted at British imperialism, giving strength to nationalist arguments of self-governance and unity in diversity, among other values. With the passage of time and generations, British imperialism has become a distant memory, and Western culture is now mainstream in India.
Hindutva, which was a sideline movement during the struggle for independence and some decades after, always had a wider vision of colonialism, and considered Islam foreign and Muslims invaders. Hindutva has now become the dominant strand of nationalism in India, and filmmakers are cashing in on it. From textbooks to cultural standards to criminal codes, a new era shaped by Hindutva’s idea of decolonisation, is underway.
Also notable in films today is a relatively bolder approach in discussing caste. Some of these films run into conflict with the censor board and become targets of mob vigilantism. A new biopic on Jyotiba Phule, the 19th century leader of the oppressed castes in Maharashtra, has had to undergo many cuts to make it palatable to current nationalist sensibilities. In his fight for liberation from social oppression, Phule considered the British an ally. You can find a commentary on caste-conscious films here.
Holy land and borders
The nation and its imagining are often tied to the land, which is depicted through art and culture as sacred. The boundaries of modern nation states often do not conform to age-old beliefs of holy land. Kailash Mansarovar is in Tibet, in China. India and China used to work together to facilitate the travel of Hindu pilgrims every year until the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted it in 2019. Then India-China relations worsened with the Galwan clash. After a break of five years, both countries are now talking about restarting the pilgrimage.
Federalism Tract: notes on Indian diversity
Gods and people of the forest
At the time of independence, the tribespeople and their lands in Dang district, Gujarat, were inducted into India in a manner quite different from the way defiant princely states were cajoled and negotiated with, to bring them into the Indian Union. “While the Instrument of Accession for other rulers addressed them as “His Highness”, the Dangs rulers, in a government resolution, were called “illiterate” and people unaware of their “financial obligations”, who were “likely to squander the whole amount [of monetary compensation] in no time”. While the other rulers were “guaranteed” their “titles, rights to succession, and privileges”, the government resolution for the Dangs rulers was meant to “settle their status, rights, and privileges,” says this fascinating field report by Abhinay Lakshman.
Christian and Hindu religious missionaries reach out to tribespeople with their religious promises. Christian missionary activities in tribal areas are considered problematic, while Hindu expansion is considered good for nation building. This is a line that the state in India has taken for a very long time, and even Dalit leaders like Dr. B.R. Ambedkar had made comments to this effect.
There has always been an incorporation of tribespeople into Hindu cultural continuity. Manu S. Pillai’s book Gods, Guns and Missionaries: The Making of the Modern Hindu Identity is a lucid and gripping account of how this process of conflict and assimilation has been going on for centuries.
The Devasthana (Adivasi place of worship) in the hamlet that Abhinay visited now also has a Shivling and the statue of a Nandi. Shree Ramkrishna Welfare Trust (SRWT), which is run by the BJP’s Rajya Sabha member and diamond merchant Govind Dholakia, is at the forefront of the continuing efforts to pull the tribespeople closer to Hinduism.
BJP’s Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai and his predecessor and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel crossed swords on the question of tribespeople and Hindu faith. Mr. Sai, a tribal himself, claimed that tribals are ardent Hindus, and Mr. Baghel was quick to point out that their identity is distinct. The admixture of practices, myths, and customs in India across communities makes clear distinctions impossible in India. But politics requires clean categories.
Walking back on Hindi in Maharashtra
The BJP-led government in Maharashtra has now withdrawn its order that made Hindi compulsory in primary school. The government decision had created a backlash in the State that has a history of language politics. The government has, however, said it would implement the three-language policy that the New Education Policy of 2020 stipulates.
Questions of representation
Nationwide variations in population growth in the last five decades are at the centre of the delimitation controversy in India currently. India’s population has grown 153% between 1971 and 2021. “If this number is taken as the basis, the Lok Sabha seats will go up to 1,374, and the House becomes unwieldy. The average annual growth rate over the five decades is 1.94%, and increasing the number of seats by this number does not make sense,” says an analysis The Hindu published this week. This analyst suggests a third option, which is to base delimitation on the Decadal Growth Average (DGA) formula. “If we average the growth rates of five decades between 1971 and 2021, we get 20.91%. If this number is used, the seats will go up to 656, which is a reasonable number,” he proposes.
Published – April 25, 2025 09:15 am IST