Culture And Anarchy

Recently I came across a news item that writers in Myanmar are trying to relearn the habits of free thought and testing the boundaries of free speech. Long spells under military rule meant journalists, writers, artists and others associated with cultural field had to undergo various levels of censorship to conform to what the regime thought was appropriate.
 
But before they cast away those conformist skins for the brave new world, it won't be a bad idea to share them with Indian writers and artists who seem to be staring at an increasingly intolerant society.

While for some learning these skills may be a tough grind as they have been under the corroding influence of democracy for more than six decades, but for organisations like say Tamil film industry or Hindi commercial film industry (who are either at the beck and call of Thackerays or Dawood Ibrahim) the learning curve to reach those levels of conformism may be a cakewalk, as they are almost there by default. Moreover the fact that the Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf has a good following in India will only be an added plus.

Another major challenge may be Indian conditions - they are different and hence the training may require some improvisations. In Myanmar the artistes have to contend with the jackboot of military junta and nothing else, but here they have to grapple with state, non-state, religious and corporate forces and that too with  many axes to grind.

Salman Rushdie recently put it very succinctly. He said that "because the writers, painters, filmmakers, artists don't have armies. We don't have the boys to put on streets to defend our film, novel or painting. So it's not hard to attack." He then went on to add that a "strange form of identity politics has developed in which people don't define themselves with things they love but by the things they hate. So to attack a book about the Ramayana, book about Shivaji or painting about Saraswati... these things are easy to do. That somehow galvanize the sense of identity of these extremist forces." 

And he should know, after all death threats and fatwas have shadowed him for decades.
Also Read: Bangalore Beat