Lyrics of a Conflict Song: Creating of the Stereotypes
- Part 2 -

Ninglun Hanghal *

A scene from documentary film 'Manipur Song'

The issue of migation is also touched upon by the film maker. Migration of youth leaving home states, or for that matter home country, for greener pastures is nothing new. Migration from rural to urban centres (towns and city) is an all India phenomenon. Migration also takes place in non-conflict zones as well. For instance, migration of people from Bihar and Utter Pradesh to Mumbai is a case in point.

In fact, migrations from non-conflict zones would be at times higher than migrations from conflict zones. This is an universal phenomenon. So migration of youths from a conflict zone like Manipur for higher studies and employment should not be seen only due to the push factor, but there are pull factors like job oportunities, wider facilities. Today migration from rural India to urban India is taking place cutting across region, ethnicity and violence. Migration phenomenon should be studied much more seriously.

A student supposedly studying in Delhi gave analysis of conflict, its impact and explanations of daily struggle in a metro city that does not welcome her. Her analysis and explanations appear to be based on the video footage from the same documentary film Manipur song, with some of the same words and phrases from the film. She is also shown to watch the same footages. The choice of charcter as respondent is pathetic.

An episode on the life of an ex militant turned drug users is shown to explain connection of militancy to drugs. This is but badly done. Though the interviews of the male addicts are shown under a "capacity building" workshop of an NGO, the focus is on family stories, their ignorance of joining miltancy, and hopelessness that led to drug abuse. This is a neat but poor script narating interconnection between militany and druge abuse – all that the film says is that militants engage with druge smuggling and in turn are victims themselves. Though there might be greater connection between the two, militant organizations' drug trading has to do largely with procuring money to buy arms. And there are much larger issues involved in drug use and HIV–AIDS, the case of broken family, social unrest, and role of family. Factors behind everything connected to drug abuse cannot be zeroed down to armed militancy. That is too simplistic a story.

The episodes also tell the story of women commercial sex workers (CSW) cum drugs users living in shabby shelters in Imphal town ( the state capital) . While there is no officiallynotified "red light" areas in Manipur, nor CSW a visible population, the tailor made self confessional "bare show" of the life of sex workers and demonstration of their skills in drug use was strikingly odd. Suggestively, the names of the selected CSW women who confessed were called "lalli and heting" these names were not suffixed with "name changed" in the subtitle. Even if the names were changed, why not a Sunita or a Priyanka?

The incorrect translation of some of their dialogue do indicate the film maker's presumption of what a CSW should be feeling or narrate before the camera. One of them said in native language "… when I look back, I feel nostalgic, or rather so to say… let down." This is translated as "I now regret all that I have done in all my life." This shows lack of sincerity and moral concern.

In as much prostitution is considered the oldest profession in the world, though forced into the trade, CSW does not necessarily regret their lives. Munni, CSW from Sonagachi, a red-light district in Kolkata in her interview with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) when asked whether she would like to leave the brothel, she said "… 'Ma' will never let me go and she is good to me and this is my home. She has promised to send me to Mumbai someday. I am here of my own will. Even if I leave this place where will I go? I have a secret lover and he used to be one of my regular customers. He is a taxi driver and we are planning to marry."[iii]

A comparative look at the two episodes shows a gendered segregated treatment by the film maker. The militant turned drug addicts, all of them men, were at a rehabilitation camp, receiving treatment and training. While the women CSW comprised only of their personal or past lives, origin and background, dependency on drugs and their daily struggles. One of the men drug addict, identified as Kalachand, even went to the extent of pushing his mother to tell before the camera that without knowing the consequences she had paved the way for his sons' addiction. Wife of one of the ex militant turned drug addict was also made to "talk" about the HIV–AIDS "status" of her addict husband.

The two episode interviews appeared more like a "confession" and a scripted dialogue. The male drug users spoke on issues they faced, first as militants then as surrendered militants and eventually as drug addict. The women sex workers cum drug addicts spoke before the camera about their life history, sex and drugs. They even demonstrated for the viewers on "intravenous drug use!"

The HIV–AIDS scenario in Manipur is certainly disturbing. But it is simplistic and abrupt to just conclude a narrative with the story of a drug addict, commercial sex worker and story of HIV children. Jackindia,[iv] an organization working on HIV–AIDS publishes that AIDS was first diagnosed in the United States in early '80s, but many still look to Africa for its origin, blaming African monkeys and African sexual behaviours. As per research the High Risk Group comprises of tribals, truck drivers and sex workers. As such Africa and India were labelled as the epicentre of AIDS and the world's AIDS capital respectively. The publication also quoted the identification of High Risk Group in Kerala in 1996 by the British Overseas Development Administration, now DfiD listing tribals, street children and sex workers.

Interestingly, Jackindia further states that in Kerala there were no street children per se and that sex workers were not a visible group. It also says that this process of identification of High Risk group is a creation of new untouchables. The publication strongly brings out the linkages of the statistics, research, health policies, intervention strategy of HIV–AIDS and concludes that the whole business was a new mechanism of colonization. The dirty and ugly looking drug addicts or women sex workers are not mere collateral victims of conflict but are probable agencies of the new mechanism for colonization. Rather than sensitization or awareness, stories of children (all of them girls) who were staying at Sneha Bhawan would generate the formation of future generation of "untouchables."

UNAIDS and NACO had listed three most important legal entities in regard to HIV scenario: (i) Right to Informed Consent/Privacy – a legal and ethical concept related to access and use of data/personal information; (ii) Right to Confidentiality – right to protection and unauthorized use of data; and (iii) Right against Discrimination – regarding fundamental rights and entitlements.

In a discussion on films and film making, award winning filmmaker Sunzu Bachaspatimayum told this writer "… if you are showing CSW or HIV persons, HIV children, traffic victims, you need to have a signed consent from the person." Explaining further the making of his national award winning film Shingnaba, a film on HIV–AIDS, Bachaspatimayum further said "… in one of the scene where the HIV person was to be shown with his girlfriend, the girlfriend agreed to come before the camera, but I shot her below the neck till the feet without showing her face. Again after the filming I showed her how it would look like. Later she asked me to delete her part from the film; so I deleted it." Even in cases of informed consent he said "we blur it." On receiving a national award for his film AFSPA 1958, Bachaspatimayum had reportedly said that "for a non feature film or a documentary it requires in-depth understanding as well as sensitivity of the issue by the film maker."[v]

Beside the bad boys, the dirty and ugly looking drug users, and shameless sex workers, presentation of Irom Sharmila was ironic. In the whole episode on "The passion of Sharmila," the contents were only of emotions and personal moments. Sharmila's role in the film looked scripted for the "crying scene." A woman read her poem and cried. Sharmila herself was at the end in tears. Compare this with Gandhi and his determined and hardened soul. Often described as the icon of democracy and non-violence, Irom Sharmila was on the contrary asked to speak on "humanity, emotions, dreams," none of her political thoughts came into the scene. This looks like a subtle and well crafted design of showing softer side ( rather the "feminine") of Sharmila, a lady in tears. This in a way mallows down, if not delegitimise, fourteen years long fast for repeal of AFSPA and her political struggle of non-violence.

Stating that the government is taking no initiative for dialogue with Sharmila while many violent resistant movements are invited for "peace talks," Civic Chandran, who scripted a one act play Meira Paibi, questioned, "… is it because Sharmila is an ordinary woman and from Northeast? Or is non-violence unromantic?"[vi]

The Manipur Song as a whole seems to be trying to sensitize "mainland India" on the whole range of issues that engulf Manipur. For a distant spectator, the 60 minute documentary appears to be mere collection of incidents, social evils, the "bad" and the "ugly." Presentation of women particularly scenes in the "Notion of collateral" makes an uncomfortable viewing, provoking viewers to question ethical and sensitive dimensions.

The introduction rightly states that "the nature of the conflict is so complex that it is difficult to portray a clear cause and effect relatonship." Neither a clear message for the audience nor an insightful analysis of the issues in question, one wonders whose interest the film is going to serve. The episodes lack interconnections and linkages. The documentary film affirms mainland India's patriarchal indifference to the stories of the margins.

Concluded ....

From Eastern Quarterly, a jounal published by Manipur Research Forum ( Delhi) vol 7, issue I&II spring and monsoon 2011
http://www.manipurresearchforum.org

Notes & References

[i] This is from Meha Dixit's writing "Dirty looking stones," Hard News, September 2010.
[ii] The term "Ima" meaning "mother" is usually used to address the women activists with a sense of respect.
[iii] Sonagachi, the largest legal red light district in Kolkata shot to fame after a documentary Born into Brothels: Calcutta's Red Light Kids won the Academy Award in 2004. Source: UNODC website, accessed during September 2010. [iv] See Jackindia, "HIV–AIDS Industry," 2002.
[v] As stated in The Sangai Express, March 19, 2010.
[vi] The questions were raised by Civic Chandran at a performance of the play Meira Paibi based on the life of Sharmila in Delhi in May 2010. For details see, The North East Sun, June 16–30, 2010.