‘Ram Ke Naam’ is a documentary that shows the destructive effects of the campaign executed by Hindu-nationalists that emphasized building a Ram temple on the grounds of the Babri Mosque. The documentary explores religious beliefs in India and how politics come into play to create tension between Hindus and Muslims. Since the mid-1900’s, India was a secular state, but as Hindu fundamentalists attempted to redefine India as solely a Hindu nation, the nation became religiously divided. The nation was no longer seen as somewhere where Hindus and Muslims could peacefully reside. The documentary portrays how Hindu history begins to suggest that India’s problems are all a result of Muslim invasion and faults. As Hindus claim to represent the history of Indian Society, we can see that religion in the documentary is portrayed through the caste system, politics, and violence.
The Hindu caste system is divided into four main categories – Brahmins (the priests), Kshatriyas (royalty), Vaishyas (traders), and Shudras (laborers). The Brahmins, Kshatriyas, and Vaishyas are all seen as a part of the ritual system, and thus throughout the movie had strong beliefs towards the Babri Mosque. On the other hand, the Shudras, at the bottom of the caste system, did not have as much investment in the dispute because they were not even allowed to enter the Mosque. This difference between opinions towards the Mosque is seen throughout the documentary through the higher castes taking much more of a violent attitude towards destroying the Mosque as they emphasize getting rid of Muslims and repossessing their land. However, the lower caste has much more of an indifferent attitude: “Hindus and Muslims are brothers. Why shouldn’t we pray side by side?” As presented in the documentary, the lower caste was much more conscientious as they showed more respect towards other religions because they did not believe that it was fair to attack others’ identities for the sake of their own. These Hindus were very critical of the higher castes campaigning to build a Ram temple in place of the Babri Mosque because they themselves wouldn’t even be able to enter the temple. Furthermore, they believed that the money they were trying to collect to bu
Current Event Totalitarian Restrictions or Ethnic Conflict
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Write a paper on a current event article that discusses restrictions on freedoms by a totalitarian state or an article on ethnic conflict within a nation. Summarize the article and explain why this issue is important to the global community. What outside influences might help change this issue? How? Is the article neutral? Why or why not?
