Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said that while it is good that the controversial film ‘Kerala Story-2 Goes Beyond’ has not been “widely watched”, it is worrying that television and the media are increasingly being “weaponised” in the country.
Gandhi made the remarks, days after the film’s release, while interacting with students on a wide range of topics at the Marian College in Kuttikkanam in Kerala’s Idukki district, during his two-day tour of the state.
Gandhi spoke about ‘Kerala Story 2’, widely described by critics as a film full of communal rhetoric and strongly opposed by parties including the Congress and the Communist Party of India (Maoist), when a student asked him about films being used for propaganda.
“The good news is that the theaters showing Kerala Story-2 seem empty and no one is watching. At the same time, it shows that there are people, a majority of them, who have an understanding of what Kerala is and what its traditions and culture are,” Gandhi said.
“But films, television and the media have been used as weapons. They have been used precisely for this purpose, to defame people, isolate them and create divisions in society so that some people benefit and others are harmed. India has pretty much become like that. If someone wants to make a certain kind of film or wants to say something in the media, he will be attacked and not allowed to speak. Whereas some other ideas can be propagated and propagated as much as you want and nothing will happen to you,” he added.
Gandhi said that although he represented Kerala in Parliament for five years, he could not fully understand the state in depth, but he learned a lot from the people of Wayanad.
“I was very surprised when I first got there,” he said. “There was a big landslide that claimed many lives, but I was impressed by how people responded. Even after this tragedy, they were helping others. It didn’t matter what community or financial background a person was from.”
Gandhi added that “large sums of money” are being spent to fund such content in India.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha also spoke in detail about the country’s education system and the growth of artificial intelligence. He claimed that the education system in India is under pressure from a certain ideology.
“If you look at vice-chancellors in universities, you will find that a large number of them have been appointed simply because they are part of the RSS or a particular ideology. There is ideological pressure on the education system. Education should not be limited to any particular way of thinking, especially to the divisive views of the RSS,” he said.
While interacting with the students, Gandhi also participated in a demonstration of ‘Kalaripayattu’, a traditional martial art form of the state.
Earlier in the day, Gandhi inaugurated the celebration of the centenary of the meeting of Mahatma Gandhi and social reformer Sri Narayana Guru in Kollam, and spoke at length about the values of truth and non-violence espoused by the two leaders.
Gandhi said that the two giants may have met a century ago in a simple place, “not a huge house full of wealth or luxury.”
He said: “The discussion between the two towering figures revolved around one topic: truth and non-violence. When giants meet, they remain humble. But when small-minded people meet, there is often arrogance and showmanship.”
Rahul noted that the shared philosophy of Guru and Gandhi is a vital antidote to the current climate of political aggression and hatred. “The essence of the constitution – which emphasizes love, respect and protection of the weak – directly reflects Guru’s philosophy,” he said.
