THE LINE OF CONTROL.

Art and emotions

Should always be bordered with

A line of control.

These are times when the concentrated cry across the world should be of one word- ‘Peace’. These are times when doves should reign above all the horizon. And these are times when harmony should become the clarion call. Times, when creativity and emotions should be marked with a line of control.

Since global communication is multilingual, it becomes a huge responsibility for all creative artistes to come together to promote the one universal language of concord. Creative art is not about depicting the gory facts of life as the artiste sees them. Whenever and wherever possible, it is also about providing a solution. And more important, doing it with conscientiousness. Especially if the medium is Cinema!

Films, particularly in India, apart from providing entertainment, also offer escapism from the harsh realities of life. Unconsciously(?) they also target the subconscious sentiments of the mass- those who think with their hearts more than with their heads. Any significance to their own lives (appropriate or bizarre) can provoke an amalgam of emotions. An audience can be made to laugh till they barf or cry till they are dry. But when rage is silently provoked, through a repeated depiction of vulgar expletives and recurring bloodshed in the garb of patriotism, it goes beyond the line of control.

This article is not a critical review of J.P.Dutta’s ‘L O C’- a movie that was recently released. It is just a reflection on the fact that although there are many facets in the making of a war movie, personal hatred should not be one of them. The Kargil heroes do deserve honour. Who can forget the fact that they endangered themselves so we could be safe? Friends, Indians and countrymen should all be made to lend their tears, so they do not forget the heroism of those valiant warriors. But each of their gallant stories has to be dealt with empathy. Not at the cost of the basic point of the senselessness of human hatred.
Like many other sensible war movies- ‘Bridge on the River Kwai’, ‘Pearl Harbour’, ‘The Thin Red Line’, ‘Saving Private Ryan’, ‘Haqeeqat’ and ‘Border’ (most of which touch a chord in our hearts) the final message given to the audience in this particular movie is neither positive nor does it have any pointed solution. Rather it is confusing and dangerous. Shown through the sheer lens of bravery, true patriotism is depicted as not just love for your country but also as a collective justification for hate. This is terrifying and unhealthy in the current scenario around us.

Wars can be instantly instigated but Peace takes time to build. It makes sense to remember that movies will always be made with only heroes in mind. Or villains! The in-betweens, the foolish supermen on the streets who come to blows with each other and the innocent onlookers who are crushed to death for no fault of theirs, only because of such touchy portrayals, will never find a way into the celluloid screen. Their fate would only be doom or the dungeon. Buried beneath the depths of inane conflicts and controversies, they will remain what they have always been- nonentities, the forgotten.

War movies should be made with a purpose- to portray the futility of war. Not to instigate more.

Nargis Natarajan.