The image trap

In Damul,Prakash Jha insulted the Brahmins,in Apharan he depicted Muslims as kidnappers,and in Gangaajal he tarnished the Yadavs. None of these sections will vote for him, claims Congress candidate Sadhu Yadav from Bihars West Champaran,about his LJP rival and movie director Prakash Jha. But unlike Yadav,who feels personally picked on by Jha in his film Gangaajal where the corrupt politician is named,as it happens,Sadhu Yadav,the average voter might not feel quite so slandered and surely they can suspend disbelief for the few hours that a Hindi film lasts,if they can take Sadhu Yadavs own pretty drastic costume and dialogue changes he now wears a skullcap and invokes Soniaji and Rahulji.

Of course,candidates with non-political but public profiles might as well expect to be held to their previous positions just look at Shashi Tharoor,who had to defend his pro-Israel articles to incensed Malayalis. But writers,artists and film-makers cant be held to the same test. Works of fiction are driven by plot,character and motive,and it is useless trying to read authorial intention from a book or a film. Making films or writing novels,even those with explicit social commitments like Jhas,is never a matter of straightforward pamphleteering. Certainly,a creative career can be directed towards political advancement for instance,MGRs undisputed dominion in Tamil Nadu was carefully crafted through his film career,as his character consistently championed subaltern causes even as his actual governance ignored them. This election,Chiranjeevi is exploiting the same broad emotional plank,as he seeks to meld his crusading film persona and his political persona into a persuasive whole.

Prakash Jhas films also often concern themselves with Bihar,but to claim that each character is a stand-in for certain communities is a laughable leap of logic. Jha should just hope that his electorate is not as literal-minded as his opponent.