The odds of regular people thinking in wide terms on society’s impoverished, disenfranchised masses are close to zero, especially in this age of corporate culture which feeds our superficial desires rather than our rational needs. Democracy is a concept that’s regularly been twisted and turned to meet the agendas of the people in power or influence. Greed is today’s primary moral, suited of course to meet the ideological mentality of the age that success, a supposed sense of moral high-ground and material gain are the most important elements for self-fulfillment. This is of course absolute nonsense, but that’s part and parcel of living in a culture in which narcissism and self-aggrandizement are moral necessities.
Let’s look at the idea of democracy. Democracy has been an idea that’s been introduced over and over again since before the Ancient Greeks, and is still used now. But it isn’t a perfect concept. For instance, the Ancient Greeks seemed to believe that everyone had equal rights, and everyone should have an equal say in the goings on in a country – except women and slaves. Modern democracies often combine morals, values, ethics, fundamentalism, corporate interests and lobbying, lifestyle choices aided by advertising – by which democracies all over the world have transformed into Corporatocracies, and turned us into a culture of fad-driven, brand and salary slaves.
What humanity needs to understand is that every distinction we create – based on race, culture, country or religion – is a human invention, and perhaps should be considered a bad invention if it harms people more than helping them.
ViBGYOR Film Festival seeks to understand the problems and inconsistencies in ideologies, governance, living conditions and genuine morals – whenever they occur freely in what we ironically term a Free Society.
In the 7th year since its inception, the festival introduces ViBGYOR Spectrum, which covers the following 7 themes which could be considered essential to understand, criticize and enlighten the way we live, our morals and ethics, and the way we think about certain basic truths about society, culture and the human condition.
Identities
Identities, in a broad sense, refer to peoples, races and cultures that are in danger of exploitation, losing their cultural identity or extinction. Essentially, Genocide occurs in different ways – be it ideological (by introducing new cultures which are entirely at odds with an indigenous culture), exploitative (forcing them into poverty, homelessness or starvation), or homicidal (wiping out races by Wars and such). It also addresses the loss of identity for people with alternate sexualities, and what is politely called the ‘minor sex’ – Women.
Rights
Every human being is entitled to few basic rights – Food, Shelter and Security. Since we pride ourselves over the fact that we have now become civilized societies, we also deserve the right to equality, freedom of expression, education, employment and health. Sadly, these are still not provided in most parts of the world.
Environmentalism and Developmentalism
Large parts of the world (especially the developing countries of the world) are under the impression that Development means more buildings, more luxuries, more choices on lifestyle products etc… What is almost entirely incomprehensible – is the fact that people ignore the effects of Industrial Pollution, Nuclear testing, the depletion of natural resources and so on which harms both the environment and the resultant quality of life.
Nation State
States are repositories of power, therefore inherently susceptible to corruption. The concept on Nations could be used to aid human progress; however, it has been used to fuel Authoritarianism, Warfare over Land and Resources, Surveillance and a recurring Dystopia, throughout all of human history.
Gender & Sexuality
A major part of the human race has been subjugated for most portions of human history, and it isn’t difficult to understand why. We have progressed through male-dominated cultures, traditions, customs and view-points - as a result of which Women have been sentenced to a subordinate existence for as long as anyone has documented. Even in Modern Society, Women have struggled in both the domestic and work environment for equality. As for sexuality, even though Scientists have discovered what have been termed the ‘Gay Gene’, it has been ridiculed or ignored and people with alternate sexualities are still treated with prejudice and persecution.
Fundamentalism V/S Diversity
Religions and other philosophical ideologies have usually been created throughout human history to get over a struggle of an ideology / regime that was illogical, irrational or inhumane. The way that any ideology usually progresses is through diversity of thought. Ironically, the same ideas that are used for social and ideological change remain unchanged, thus providing the breeding grounds for fanaticism, ignorance, self-limiting thoughts, torture, alienation and persecution.
Culture and Media
Noam Chomsky famously wrote a book on the term ‘the manufacturing of Consent’. What this essentially meant is that Corporations, Media and Public Relations work together to form a public image for anything and everything – which the media constantly hammers society with – until society eventually begins to believe in the manufactured fantasy. Another aspect to this method of brainwashing is expressed in Adam Curtis’s documentary ‘The Century of the Self’. On principle, Journalism has the job of reporting the news, irrespective of whether the information reported is perceived as good or bad; however it is now employed in fabricating gossip columns and irrelevant scandals.
This is the ViBGYOR Spectrum in a nutshell.
Seven Years. Seven Themes. One Festival. Enlightening oneself about the world one lives in isn’t a need. It’s a necessity.
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