INDIAN 2 is Casteist, Racist and Insensitive
This is one of the most insensitive and politically wrong movies that has been produced in the last ten years, especially for a movie that is so "political." With its 90s ideas, it is neither revolutionary nor progressive. shankar keeps blaming Dalits, domestic workers, everyday wage earners, and the general public for the nation's decline.
He accuses rag pickers of being corrupt for being "inept" at their jobs, blames dirty streets on them, shames the average person for obtaining subsidised goods, and draws comparisons between their widespread corruption and that of politicians and industrialists. Do people who say they want to "change society," like Jeyamohan, Shankar, or Kamal Hassan, not understand that people who work in sanitation are paid pitifully little and are required to labour in very filthy, cruel, and hazardous environments?
He accuses rag pickers of being corrupt for being "inept" at their jobs, blames dirty streets on them, shames the average person for obtaining subsidised goods, and draws comparisons between their widespread corruption and that of politicians and industrialists. Do people who say they want to "change society," like Jeyamohan, Shankar, or Kamal Hassan, not understand that people who work in sanitation are paid pitifully little and are required to labour in very filthy, cruel, and hazardous environments?
Not to be overlooked is the Calendar Song, an unneeded sequence of ladies dancing in skimpy clothing for the benefit of males. In spite of the uncomfortable close-ups of these partially nude ladies, indian 2 is a flawless follow-up to indian 1, which was also replete with obscene, repulsive, and depraved "jokes" about women's bodies.
Because of how ridiculous almost every serious scene is, shankar decides to insert incredibly problematic, casteist, and homophobic concepts into the story at that point. indian thatha employs a variety of "punishments" to eliminate the bad actors in the community. One such "punishment" involves transforming a cis male into a transman by dressing in all-red lipstick and makeup and projecting a feminine body image.
Another casteist scenario follows, in which Kamal refers to a group of young people he meets online who have dark complexion, funky coloured hair, speak tamil using the dialect of North Madras, and are decked out in accessories influenced by Bob Marley as "Average" Manis. He continues by calling out these men for using data-facebook as "evolved vandals" who used to write on the walls of public restrooms.
Social media is not just a platform for the wealthy and powerful. It is callous and narrow-minded to practise estrangement and exclusion in a place where everyone is treated equally and to prevent members of the minority from entering it. siddharth used to write on data-facebook walls, and Kamal used twitter to share his political views. As a film, indian 2 holds that social media is the key to revolution, but how else would the nation return to its deeply patriarchal, casteist, and backward ways if it alienates a whole population and turns social media into a closed platform?