'Article 15': An Intersection of Caste and Gender
Rape is the fourth most common crime against women in India. According to the 2021 annual report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 31,677 rape cases were registered across the country, or an average of 86 cases daily. There is no denying that women in India are highly vulnerable, but what makes things worse is the addition of a caste element to it. The rapists of low-caste women often proudly claim that they raped to show these women “their place” in the society. Aditi (played by Isha Talvar) is a gender equality and human rights activist who has a firm conviction from the beginning itself that it is a case of rape. She points out the fact that while issues like the Nirbhaya Rape Case capture the headlines of all newspapers when a Dalit girl gets raped, the news does not even get a place on the front page.
Caste discrimination has been an inherent problem in India, with its roots so deep and robust that several affirmative steps have failed to bring all on an equal platform. The Article 15 of the Indian Constitution clearly states that : “The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth, or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, restriction, or condition with regard to-access to shops, public restaurants, hotels, and places of public entertainment; or-the use of wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads, and places of public resort maintained wholly or partly out of State funds or dedicated to the use of the general public.”
B.R. Ambedkar, coming from a low caste himself and having suffered his entire life, was very concerned about the issue of caste discrimination. As a result, when he became the Drafting Committee's Chairman, he ensured that the Constitution provided equality and dignity for all. Despite this provision of the Constitution, caste discrimination, even today, is the norm in many parts of India. The Additional Commissioner Ayan Ranjan (Ayushmann Khurrana) explores a new side of India as he gets posted in this village and discovers that true India has much more than just the “Taj Mahal.” As soon as he comes, chaos begins when two girls are murdered and hung, and it is declared a case of honour killing. Their fathers are forced to give false statements and are framed for their daughters’ murders. As Ayan slowly finds out that it was a gang rape case and begins taking action, he realizes that the mess is much deeper than his expectation.
The film beautifully unfolds and sheds light on inherent ideas of caste discrimination like the upper caste cannot even eat in the same plate as the lower caste, “ye to aise hi hai”- the idea of they vs. us instead of “we”, and the beating of those who tried to enter the temple. The orthodox high-caste policemen continuously ignored the complaint of three missing girls for two continuous days, saying that they run and then come back- “it's just a regular habit for them.”
Another crucial aspect that the film highlights is how political parties further complicate these situations and claim to be the leaders of those who usually never care about the rallies and slogans. Additionally, politicians use their power not just to maintain this caste system but even to protect the culprits. It is also worth noticing that the Assistant doctor, who is despised by Bhramadatta Singh (Manoj Pahwa), saying that low-caste people like her are educated through the money of high-caste taxpayers, is also a woman.
Ayan Ranjan’s statement when he is investigated sums up the Indian situation when he explains that there is violence hidden below the visible violence, and this violence is never noticed. It becomes a part of our culture- “samajik vyavastha” or law and order. This concept of structural violence emphasizes how we as a society normalize these discriminations, never once giving it a thought that we are all equal citizens, equal human beings. We employ the lower castes to do those works that we cannot do ourselves and then despise them as if they are not even humans. In the case of India, it is especially worth noting that SCs, STs, and OBCs together form around 70% of our population. Yet, by declaring them as the minority, we have marginalized them forever.
The film ends on a good note as they not only find the third missing girl and the culprits get convicted but sit together eating the same food regardless of the caste of the person who cooked the meal. In my opinion, this movie is a must-watch as it peels off multiple layers of Indian society and holds up a mirror to our nation.
Written by:
Anushka Srivastava,
Content Associate
Comments
Post a Comment