Film on the Role of Rationality & Beliefs


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Creator/Artist: Nitin Shekhar

Category: Communication Design

Document: P3 Project

Batch: 2014-2016

Source: India,   IDC IIT Bombay

Period:  2009-2018

Medium: Poster pdf

Supervisor: Prof. Sudesh Balan


Detailed Description

India today is plagued by superstitious and irrational religious practices. Only three states in India have laws specifically targeting these practices. Over the past four decades there are many rationalists organisations in India which have successfully targeted internationally popular “god men” who boast a following of millions, exposing their activities as nothing but “well-packaged gimmickry”. In a bid to debunk belief in miracles, palmistry and astrology in the countryside, where the majority of people are illiterate and believe in the supernatural, there are several organisations which hold regular workshops and street plays. These organisations have been trying to pass laws which prohibit godmen from perpetuating these superstitions which hasn’t found a lot of takers. Yet we see religiosity declining in some factions of the society which makes us ask the question about the importance of beliefs and religiosity in today’s day and age. As much as they are considered foolish, superstitions do affect the society a lot. A large section of our society believes in superstition and blindly follow religious practices and therefore fall prey to conmen and godmen and it hinders social progress. Superstitions should not be confused with tradition and culture. Through this project we aim to look at how various groups in the society look at religions and what their belief systems are. Fiction and films influence public opinion, not by making political statements or attacking certain sections, but by the stories they tell and the way they tell them. I would like to stay away from the documentary format and focus towards a fictional film that addresses or asks these questions instead of a film that takes a stand disseminates information. The larger question of what beliefs are and why they are followed needs to be answered. Through this project I want to address the issues behind religion, belief, religiosity, tradition, culture and rationalism through a film


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https://dsource.in/case-study/kasaraha