In a push to increase patriotism, Indianmoviegoers must stand for anthem

Children in India wave the flag in celebration of Independence Day in North Kolkata. A new law will require movie

theaters in India to play the national anthem. Photo by Subir Haider/India Today Group/Getty Images

India’s Supreme Court has ordered cinemas across the country to play the national anthem

before film screenings. This is in an effort to encourage citizens to “feel this is my country

and this is my motherland.”

Indians weary from weeks of standing in lines at banks and ATM machines will get no

reprieve at the cinema: the Court also directed that moviegoers should “stand up in

respect” while the anthem is played.

The decision by the country’s highest court on Tuesday draws India's cinema industry into

disputes over patriotism and national identity. It is one of a number of recent developments

to do so.

The panel of judges was responding to a lawsuit that claimed the national anthem was

regularly being dishonored. The case pointed at cinemas as an example of this. Prior to

the case, the two Indian states of Maharashtra and Goa required the national anthem to be

played in cinemas.

By Michael Safi, The Guardian, adapted by Newsela staff on 12.06.16

Word Count 855

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Show Respect To The Anthem And The Flag

“People should feel that they live in a nation and show respect to the national anthem and

the national flag,” the Court said.

The Court added that in the name of “individually perceived notions of freedom,” some

people were disrespectful toward national symbols.

According to the Court, the Indian flag should be displayed and the doors should be

closed to prevent people from entering or leaving while the national anthem is played.

The Court also banned dramatizing the national song, printing it on an “undesirable

object,” singing an abridged version or making money from it.

The anthem is called "Jana Gana Mana." It was last ordered to be played in cinemas

across India after the country’s 1962 war with China, but the practice was eventually

discontinued.

Tensions Between India And Pakistan Affect Movie Industry

Indian popular cinema is known for its formulaic song-and-dance numbers. It has also

been known in the past decade to tackle significant social issues, including religious

tension and violence against women.

But the industry has experienced pushback, including from India’s censorship board. In

June, the board ordered more than 90 changes to a film about drug problems in the state

of Punjab, including the removal of any references to Punjab.

The cinema industry recently became caught up in tensions between India and Pakistan

when The Indian Motion Picture Producers Association announced it was banning

Pakistanis from appearing in Indian films. This decision came when 19 Indian soldiers

were killed by militants with suspected Pakistani backing.

Ultranationalist groups threatened to disrupt the screening of a Bollywood blockbuster

starring Fawaz Khan, a Pakistani actor. Ultranationalism is an extreme form of nationalism.

Nationalism is when leaders base their words and actions on shared ideas about national

identity. But in India, religious, ethnic and class divisions have created tensions around

who belongs and who doesn't.

Because of these tensions, Khan was forced to skip the premiere of the film over the

controversy. He has not returned to India since.

Writer and activist Salil Chaturvedi, who uses a wheelchair, was allegedly assaulted in

October at a movie theater in Goa by someone who was angry that he had not stood

during the anthem.

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India's National Identity Under Debate

The election in 2014 of the prime minister, Narendra Modi, has fueled fierce debates over

the country’s national identity. Modi is a devotee of Hindu nationalism, a philosophy at

odds with India’s democratic political tradition.

Critics say the rise of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party has emboldened Hindu nationalists

and given voice to a narrower definition of patriotism.

Shylashri Shankar, a research fellow who has written a book on the Indian Supreme Court,

said on Wednesday that the anthem ruling was a bit worrisome. "It is, in a sense, putting its

weight behind notions of nationalism and what it means to be Indian," she said.

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She said she remembered the anthem being played at cinemas when she was a child,

“but the notion of the anthem then was different to what it is now, when it is imbued with

much more weight.”

New Law Irks Some Moviegoers

One cinemagoer in south Delhi, 22-year-old Surabhi, said the order was “going against

what we go to the movies for.”

“We want to relax, to enjoy ourselves, to spend time with family and friends. We stand for

the national anthem when it plays before a speech, or the Republic Day parade or in

school. At the beginning of a film it serves no purpose,” she said.

“Nationalism doesn’t mean standing up for the national anthem, it means standing up for

your country, for what’s right. So encourage that.”

Furqan, 26, agreed. “I don’t have to prove my nationalism and patriotism every time I go

anywhere. It’s coming into our private spaces, our private lives,” she said.

Nitin Datar, head of the Maharashtra-based Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association,

welcomed the Supreme Court’s order. He said some of the country’s 9,000 single-screen

cinemas might struggle to implement the order quickly, but would have no trouble making

sure its customers stood during the anthem.

“There are very few stray cases [where people don’t stand] but otherwise the public

respect the anthem,” he said.

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Quiz

1 Complete the sentence.

Critics of Narendra Modi are MOST concerned about ........

(A) his involvement with India's censorship board.

(B) his support of the Supreme Court ruling about the national anthem.

(C) his ideas about the country's national identity.

(D) his support of the Indian Motion Picture ban of Pakistanis.

2 According to the article, which of the following people and groups have perspectives in

AGREEMENT with one another?

(A) the Ultranationalists and The Indian Motion Picture Producers Association

(B) India's Supreme Court and Fawaz Khan

(C) Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shylashri Shankar

(D) Nitin Datar and Salil Chaturvedi

3 Which of the following ideas is emphasized by the graphic "Religions of India"?

(A) India's religious diversity is something to be acknowledged and celebrated.

(B) India's increase of Islamic citizens will help relations between Pakistan and

India.

(C) India's film industry has attempted to take on more serious social issues.

(D) India's Hindu nationalism likely does not represent the interests of all its

people.

4 Based on information in the graphic "Religions of India," which piece of data is MOST

important to consider with regard to the philosophy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi?

(A) 2 percent of the Indian population practices religions not identified

(B) 20 percent of the country does not practice Hinduism

(C) about 1.2 billion people are represented by the graphic

(D) Christianity and Sikhism are minority religions in India

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