Furore surrounding Phule movie comes just days after the release of Chhava, another film based on a legendary figure from Maharashtra - Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj - which sparked communal tensions.
In his seminal work Gulamgiri or Slavery published in 1873, Jyotirao Phule begins the preface with a scathing indictment against the upper caste Brahmins: “Since the advent of the rule of Brahmins for centuries (in India), the Shudras and the Atishudras are suffering hardships and are leading miserable lives.”
Tracing the history of Brahmin domination beginning some 3000 years ago, Phule contends that the Aryans, the progenitors of the present Brahmin race were not natives but migrated to the plains of Hindustan from regions beyond the Indus River. To establish their power in the new land and control the native aboriginal population, he argues, they devised a “code of cruel and inhuman laws” that remains unparalleled in the history of any other nation.
Originally written in Marathi in Pune around the time when Brahmins maintained an unshakeable hold on all social and religious affairs under British rule and practised untouchability, Phule라이브 바카라 explosive anti-caste critique rattled the community of high caste priests who denounced the booklet for its ‘venomous propaganda.’
Nearly 150 years after the groundbreaking work, Phule라이브 바카라 life and work continue to unnerve the Brahmins. The latest attempt to resurrect Phule and his wife social reformer Savitri라이브 바카라 revolutionary life on the silver screen has come under fire following objections from Brahmin outfits and censorship from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) over casteist references. The biopic titled ‘Phule’ starring Pratik Gandhi in the titular role and Patralekhaa as Savitri, set for a theatrical release on April 11, on the occasion of Phule라이브 바카라 198th birth anniversary celebration, has been indefinitely postponed.
Based on the 2.18-minute trailer clip, the Sakal Brahmin Samaj—a coalition of 56 Brahmin organizations in Maharashtra—has lodged a complaint with the CBFC, objecting to the references and portrayals of the community in the film.
“In the trailer, there is a scene of a small Brahmin child wearing a janeu (sacred thread) throwing cow dung on Savitri bai. This is objectionable and false. There could be more such scenes in the movie, which can send a wrong message in the society,” said Vishwajeet Deshpande, region head of Parshuram Hindu Seva Sangh, a Pune-based outfit promoting Brahmin welfare.
Manoj Tare, leader of Hindu Mahasangh, another Brahmin outfit from Pune added that while it is a fact that Phule faced oppression from Brahmins, the social reformer was also supported by Brahmins in opening the first school for girls. “The movie should also show the other side of Brahmins who helped Phule. We have no objections to historical
facts but showing a small child in a Brahmin attire attacking Savitri is not accurate,” he said.
Following the objections, the CBFC has suggested the makers incorporate a total of 10 changes by modifying specific caste-based terms. These include replacing the visual of “man carrying broom” with “boys throwing cow dung balls at Savitribai”, changing the dialogue of “3000 saal ki gulami’’ to “kai saal puraani hain (this slavery is several years old),” replacing the words Peshwai (Brahmin rule) to Rajeshahi (monarchy), removing the caste words Mang, Mahar, and amending the subtitle of caste to varna.
Deshpande and Tare added that since the movie deals with the sensitive topic of caste oppression, the depictions of the past harsh realities and treatment of the Bahujan community by the Brahmins could stir fresh tensions between the two communities. They have demanded Phule라이브 바카라 director Anant Mahadevan to release the movie in theatres after incorporating necessary changes.
Incidentally, Mahadevan, himself a Brahmin, blamed the unnecessary controversy on the Brahmin outfits that got “carried away by a two-minute trailer.” He emphasised there was nothing objectionable in the movie.
The furore surrounding Phule comes just days after the release of Chhava, another film based on a legendary figure from Maharashtra Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj -- son of Shivaji and heir to the Maratha empire-- which sparked communal tensions. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis led the Mahayuti government held a special screening of Chhava in the state legislature and lauded the movie for highlighting the tyranny of Mughal ruler Aurangzeb. The political promotion of Chhava galvanised Hindutva outfits to campaign for the removal of Aurangzeb라이브 바카라 grave from the state, leading to riot situations in Nagpur and other parts of the state.
Leaders and activists from the Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Dalit communities questioned why the CBFC appeared to have readily approved Chhava despite its partisan portrayal of the Muslim community, yet recommended changes to Phule.
Phule, hailing from the Mali (gardener) community of OBC, is revered as an icon along with Shahu Maharaj and Bhimrao Ambedkar by the OBC and Schedule Caste communities for fighting against social inequality and uplifting the marginalised communities. Phule is helmed not just as a social reformer, but a revolutionary and a founding father of the social renaissance movement in the country.
“This is a clear conspiracy by the state government and the censor board against Phule, as it shows the historical injustices committed by the Brahmins,” says Shrawan Deore, OBC activist and scholar. “Phule was aggressive in his attack on the Brahmins as they treated all other caste groups below them worse than animals. If you show a movie on Phule without his rebellion, that is simply erasing his identity as a revolutionary.”
Deore pointed out that the Maharashtra government has officially released all the written works of Phule in original Marathi which contains several references to the words Peshwai, Bhattkunde, Bhatt and Brahmins. In 1991, during the centenary of Phule라이브 바카라 death anniversary, the state government also commissioned the translation of Gulamgiri into English and presented its copy to renowned human rights icon Nelson Mandela during his visit to India.
“We can’t selectively cover or erase certain historical facts to protect hurting sentiments of some community. Does this mean that the government will erase ‘controversial’ words or terms from the next reprint of Phule라이브 바카라 literature,” Deore asked.
Scholars from the OBC community remarked that Phule라이브 바카라 stark documentation of the atrocities and injustices perpetrated by Brahmins in 19th-century Maharashtra is so unflinchingly raw that it can be considered unfit for portrayal on screen. For instance, Phule notes the following instances of Brahmin tyranny in Gulamgiri:
‘It was difficult for the Shudras to move about freely in the streets for their daily routine, most of all in the mornings when persons and things cast long shadows about them. If a ‘Bhat Saheb’ were to come along from the opposite direction, the Shudra had to stop by the road until such time as the ‘Bhat Saheb’ passed by—for fear of casting his polluting shadow on him. He was free to proceed further only after the ‘Bhat Saheb’ had passed by him. Should a Shudra be unlucky enough to cast his polluting shadow on a Bhat inadvertently, the Bhat used to belabour him mercilessly and would go to bathe at the river to wash off the pollution. The Shudras were forbidden even to spit in the streets. Should he happen to pass through a Brahmin (Bhat) locality he had to carry an earthen pot slung about his neck to collect his spittle. (Should a Bhat Officer find a spittle from a Shudra라이브 바카라 mouth on the road, woe betide the Shudra!)”
Dr R D Shinde, professor at Nanded라이브 바카라 Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University, and author of four books on Phule, noted that the social reformer was primarily against exploitation and oppression. “Phule wasn’t against any caste or religion. He was a revolutionary in the true sense. He fought against the tyranny of the Brahmins as well as the Britishers.”
Shinde said that in Phule라이브 바카라 time only three top caste groups, Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas were allowed to live, educate, worship and earn money with dignity. “All other 3500 castes were grouped as Shudras and ati shudras, and not even considered humans. They were treated worse than animals.” He remarked that Phule라이브 바카라 attempts at organising the Shudra and ati-Shudra communities, riled the Brahmins as it challenged the established social norms.
After the publication of Gulamgiri, Phule established the Satyashodhak Samaj' (Society of Truthseekers) to liberate the Shudras and ati-shudras and to prevent their exploitation by the Brahmins. Besides social reform, Phule was also an eminent political thinker, intellectual, agriculturalist, legislator, teacher and feminist who not just educated his wife but encouraged education for girls by opening the first school for girls.
Shinde remarked that Phule라이브 바카라 multi-faceted talents were dismissed by the Brahmins, who ridiculed his English and labelled him a puppet of Christian missionaries for his outspoken condemnation of caste discrimination. “Attempts to erase his achievements beyond social reformation are not new. The Brahmin class suppressed him because they could not tolerate the brilliance and intellect of someone like him from a lower class.”
Phule finds himself at the centre of a storm once again surrounded by tone-deaf propaganda of the upper caste and Brahmins, OBC leaders said. At an event to celebrate Phule라이브 바카라 birth anniversary in Pune, BJP MP Udayanraje Bhosale seized the opportunity to claim that women라이브 바카라 education was started by his ancestors under Satara ruler Pratapsinh Bhosale. Earlier, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat inaccurately credited Lokmanya Tilak instead of Phule for discovering the samadhi of Shivaji at Raigad fort.
Deore alleged that in the current political environment, where Maharashtra is under the control of Brahmin leadership, whitewashing of achievements of OBC and Dalit communities was not surprising. “Truth can’t stay hidden for a long time. Phule라이브 바카라 thoughts and anti-caste ideology remain preserved in his writings which continue to serve as a guiding light for social justice. His books and poems are the real political weapon against inequality.