The Tainted Spotlight

After being asked about a hundred times about what I thought about the documentary "India's Daughter", I finally had to write this down. All the ruckus about the documentary India's Daughter only reiterates one phrase - Much Ado about Nothing. Now before being bombarded with all sorts of negative comments, let me make one thing clear, my solidarity lies where yours lie too - with the Nation, with the women of the Nation, with the women all over the World and with those good men who fall through the wormhole of generalization.

I am yet to understand that this documentary, which is rather in-aptly named India's Daughter, serves means to what end?
After having watched it, it appears to me as a tell tale of the hideous crime which happened with Nirbhaya. But, with the amount of coverage this case already had, this grim story was no first timer to anybody.
The only people my heart cried out for were Nirbhaya herself and her parents.
The documentary had the added take of making the viewers hear it straight from the perpetrator's mouth.
Did it add any value? No. Nothing. Nada. You were sensationalizing a brutal crime. I am still trying to find a social message, please.
Was it a moment-of-truth? No. The fraction of society that is your audience, is aware that this mindset needs to change...and change is coming.
Was it a grueling experience? Yes. I couldn't care less what the perpetrator thought. What he did, was wrong. Period. He did not deserve an audience for narrating the heinous crime he committed. India's daughters did not deserve to be threatened again by him.
Do all Indian men or the "Indian Society" as a whole feel like this? Excuse me! This is the worst crime of generalization.
The hand-picked few to represent Indian society now consists of a demented rapist, his equally imprudent lawyers with nerve-racking deluded analogies and the family members of the convicts who are hoping that all this is a bad dream? Think for yourself! Every coin has two sides.
And you name this as "India's Daughter"? This shows your own myopic vision.
While this is a grave issue plaguing India and the World in general, this also does not portray the entire population.
I am also India's Daughter and many will agree with me when I say that growing up, and even now after I am married, I have had the support of many good men and women who helped me flourish, who helped me be out and about, who taught me the importance of having an opinion and voicing my opinion, who helped me be me and transform into who I am today.

 Honestly, this documentary did not deserve the commotion that was associated with it and thereby, banning or not banning it is inconsequential. It only appeared to me as an insensitive and cynical attempt to capture eyeballs and media headlines.

 What was this documentary trying to accomplish? To hold a mirror? Well, then I must say the mirror had many cracks on it. This is not at all the full picture of a society as huge as India.

Just a tip - next time you plan on holding a mirror, get a good one and hold it well, I want to see the full view!



Dated: 13th March, 2015
This article has also been published in awaz.blog.com