Chennai: Maamannan, a Mari Selvaraj political thriller and actor-producer Udhayanidhi Stalin’s final movie earlier than he commits to life as full-time politician, makes an attempt to reiterate his get together Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s (DMK) dedication to its authentic ideology of social justice. This comes at a time when Tamil Nadu has seen a number of cases of discrimination in opposition to members of the Dalit group.
The movie talks about caste oppression inside a celebration whose ideology is ‘equality and social justice’.
Vadivelu, who performs the titular character Maamannan, a two-time MLA, is mistreated by the get together’s district secretary Rathnavel (performed by Fahadh Faasil), an upper-caste Hindu and a product of dynastic politics.
Mari Selvaraj makes references to the DMK when he reveals the movie’s fictional get together — Samathuva Samooganeedhi Makkal Kazhagam — and the highest management as ardent followers of Dravida Kazhagam (DK) chief Periyar. The DMK was shaped when C.N. Annadurai determined to kind his personal get together that might interact in electoral politics, in contrast to the DK. The DMK until date continues to hold ahead the teachings of Periyar, Anna and M. Karunanidhi.
Udhayanidhi is the son of DMK chief and present Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.Okay. Stalin.
Mari Selvaraj’s first two movies — Pariyerum Perumal and Karnan — each spoke about caste oppression confronted by Dalits, and his newest, too, touches upon among the untold tales of caste-based violence and oppression, reserved constituency politics, and the tough actuality of caste-based voting.
“Cinema has been an integral a part of the social cloth of Tamil Nadu and from Justice (Occasion) to Congress to the Dravidian events, all of them have used cinema as a instrument,” mentioned A.S. Panneerselvan, political analyst and a fellow at Chennai’s Roja Muthiah Analysis Library.
Chatting with ThePrint, DMK spokesperson and advocate Manuraj Shunmugasundaram claimed that the intertwining of cinema and politics within the state was the “direct consequence of the Dravidian motion”.
On the finish of Maamannan, Vadivelu’s character is made the speaker of the meeting.
Social media has been abuzz drawing comparisons between how All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) chief after which Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa had appointed P. Dhanapal as speaker in 2012, making him the primary Dalit speaker of Tamil Nadu meeting. Within the AIADMK’S second time period underneath EPS, Dhanapal continued because the speaker.
“The DMK has nothing to brag about. They haven’t finished something within the state for social justice. It was the AIADMK underneath Jayalalithaa’s rule that obtained 69 per cent reservation. It was the AIADMK which appointed the primary Dalit speaker to the meeting,” mentioned former AIADMK MP Dr J. Jayavardhan.
In response to Manuraj, although, the DMK pioneered social justice measures by means of landmark legislative reforms way back to in 1970. He spoke about a number of schemes of the DMK like ‘self-respect’ marriage laws, abolition of hereditary priesthood, provision of scholarships to college students from SC & ST communities, succession rights for ladies, and all-caste dwellings in Periyar Samathuvapuram, amongst others.
“Many of those schemes and insurance policies have discovered resonance in theatre, cinema and widespread fiction as properly. This has ensured that the social justice philosophy has been taken to the general public at massive and created a extra harmonious society.”
Chatting with media individuals Wednesday on the AIADMK headquarters earlier than a gathering of district secretaries, get together chief Edappadi Okay. Palaniswami mentioned, “Everyone seems to be speaking about Udhyanidhi Stalin’s film Mamannan. Is that basically mandatory proper now? The DMK, when it was in Opposition, had abused speaker Dhanapal who’s from SC group. Now DMK is speaking concerning the welfare of the SC group and Udhayanidhi is making a film concerning the burdens confronted by SC.”
“That is ironic. AIADMK is the one get together which doesn’t discriminate on the idea of caste, faith and sophistication. AIADMK is the explanation for Dalit reaching these heights of their life. In the course of the MGR and Jayalaithaa interval, many schemes in lots of sectors, particularly in training, had been launched for Dalits.”
Nonetheless, prior to now six months, there have been over 5 circumstances of caste-based discrimination in temples the place these belonging to the Dalit group have been refused entry.
The ruling DMK with its silence on the problem has introduced upon itself the Opposition AIADMK’s criticism that the DMK has not labored for social justice.
Additionally learn: Maamannan reveals winds of change in Tamil Nadu politics. A democratic upsurge is shut
‘Political leaders’ feedback getting used to publicise movies’
The Bharatiya Janata Occasion (BJP) state vice-president Narayanan Thirupathy, a censor board member, mentioned he wish to see a movie as a movie and never from a political angle. “Off late, in Tamil Nadu individuals are utilizing political leaders’ feedback to boost or publicise a film in order that the movie does properly.”
Praising the movie for showcasing the caste-based disparities inside political events, Director Pa. Ranjith, had tweeted, “Udhayanidhi should concentrate on the immense problem of caste discrimination throughout the DMK. We imagine that Udhayanidhi will take steps towards abolishing discrimination contained in the get together.”
To this Udhayanidhi replied that the DMK from “Parasakthi to Maamanan” has been preventing caste discrimination by means of its cinemas. Parasakthi was a 1952 movie written by M. Karunanidhi and is taken into account a landmark ideological movie for the DMK.
“Each time the get together (DMK) has come to energy, social justice has been given central significance within the legal guidelines and schemes introduced out, and the get together continues to battle for this within the political subject,” added Udhayanidhi.
Campaign for social justice
In response to a post-poll survey carried out by Lokniti-CSDS and reported within the media, the DMK was in a position to win northern a part of the state within the 2021 meeting elections with the help of the Dalit group, and within the western half — thought-about an AIADMK fortress — it was in a position to break in because of the help of the Arunthathiyar Dalits.
The AIADMK and its allies within the north had the backing of dominant castes just like the Vanniyar — a sub-caste of the politically and economically influential Gounder group, to which its present chief EPS belongs — and the Mudaliars, an influential land-owning group.
Within the western belt, too, the AIADMK had the help of the Gounders.
In April this yr the DMK had introduced collectively 19 political events for a social justice convention. Whereas varied political events mobilise opposition help on varied points — as an illustration the Aam Aadmi Occasion taking over the problem of central authorities’s alleged misuse of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED), and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee protesting Centre’s “discrimination” in opposition to Bengal, the DMK has been sticking to theme of social justice.
Nonetheless, Tamil Nadu has witnessed a number of cases over the previous months the place members of the Scheduled Castes (SC) had been denied entry into Hindu temples.
For instance, at Mazhai Mariamman temple in Alampallam, situated within the Thanjavur district, Dalits had been denied entry by the dominant Vellalars, a sub-sect of the Gounders. As a consequence, income officers sealed the temple. C. Umarani, the village panchayat president, advised ThePrint, “Following the temple’s closure and our persistent demand for temple entry, the dominant caste members convened a gathering and determined to withhold employment alternatives from Dalits. Moreover, they started pressuring us to repay any loans we had taken.”
Alampallam is a reserved constituency for SC ladies, however following the tiff over the temple, Umarani mentioned the dominant castes stopped contain her within the affairs of the Panchayat. “I used to be the one who took the temple concern to the district collector. They even mentioned that I received solely due to their help and now I’ve acted in opposition to them.”
That is an up to date model of the article.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
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