Noted theatre director and Gandhian Prasanna says building a civil society based on simple living, civility and decency can help maintain communal harmony in society. Politics has lost its significance at least for the time being, he says.
What is the reason behind divisive elements raising their head now?
The word reaction is often used politically. The reaction is fundamental and whenever there is an extreme situation, there is an extreme reaction. We are going through extreme modernism and the age of automation. It has become exactly like the magical world of Ravana. We don’t want to get out of extreme modernism as we feel it is comfortable and it has brought us enormous wealth, and there is a reaction set in every human being.
This reaction has nothing to do with the intellect, but with the internal self. So, they are reacting desperately and this is what is creating reactionary politics. The tragedy is that it has gone to another extreme, the extreme tradition, which is mere symbolism. The only way out of this is to realise God in his or her true sense, which is simple living, taking care of the community and the poor. All of us have given up on the essential idea of God and gone into reactionary politics or culture. That is the reason why divisive elements are raising their heads. When you are panicking you become divisive and never trust others and for all your ills.
How important is youth to tackle this problem?
Youth can do a lot and probably will do. I have a lot of confidence in the youth. Don’t forget it was the youth which has always led great movements. Unfortunately, people who created all this mess do not want to trust young people.
How can civil society play a more effective role in protecting the country from communal elements? Those people in civil society, who believe in simple living should start propagating that idea and not sit quietly. There is a silly notion that rich people are civilised and poor uncivilised. Every poor person is living a decent life with much less income and they teach us about simple living.
Does theatre continue to play an effective role in this as it did before?
We have to differentiate between the handmade theatre or real theatre and the virtual theatre. People think of serials, cinema and the internet also as theatre. The real theatre is handmade and we theatre people are cousins of poor people, weavers, cobblers and others. Theatre is a great educator.
Unfortunately, we look at theatre only as a performance and something to go and see by buying a ticket. If we look at theatre just as something to be brought, then it can never match television and cinema. As a buyable product, television and cinema are far superior as they would have spent crores of rupees. So, the beauty of theatre lies in the process itself and being part of the community. It strengthens the community as men work with women, Muslims work with Christians and there is no question of not liking them. Theatre is a great educator in community building, simple living and hard work. Theatre groups should become small, merge with the community and spread the message within the community.
What about social media? It is portrayed as a tool for freedom of expression, but is being misused to spread hate.
Anything you create is used by good and bad elements. Social media is used more effectively by the bad elements than by the good elements.
How important is history in promoting communal harmony, especially at a time when the ruling dispensation is accused of pushing for changes in the historical narrative of the country to suit ideological ends?
History is as important as any other science subject, but it cannot replace mythology. Mythology is built through memory and memory is what builds culture and beings. In the name of mythology, people are misusing history. If you go by mythology, Rama is a metaphor. That metaphor is very clear and it can never go against Babar. Rama becomes relevant inside the community, but you cannot use Rama to attack Muslims. If you have done that, maybe it looks like you have succeeded for a while, but eventually, it will backfire. I am not saying this as a defence of Muslims. I know a section of Muslims is into excessive culturalism and that is bad. I respect AB Vajpayee for his great statement on ‘Raj Dharma’ to take care of everyone in the community equally.
Which factors can benefit in promoting communal harmony among different communities?
Building a civil society based on simple living, civility and decency can save the situation. No politics can save the situation as all political parties come for short intervals and they start accusing each other. Politics has lost its importance at least for the time being.