Ram Ke Naam

Veerangana Singh
MAMC-AV
19050144032`

‘Ram Ke Naam’ or ‘In The Name Of God’ is an award winning 1992 documentary
film by Anand Patwardhan. It has been the subject of controversy from the time it
was released till recently, when YouTube put an age restriction on it despite the film
having a ‘U’ certificate from the Indian censor board. The film was broadcast on
Doordarshan after a number of legal disputes and sparked an intense debate among
the versatile Indian audience.

The documentary is a commentary on religious fanaticism and the involvement of

politics within the same. It explores the highly disputed topic of the illegal demolition
of the Babri Masjid situated in Ayodhya, which is considered to be the birthplace of
Lord Ram. As shown in the first few minutes of the film, Hindus and Muslims had
been coexisting peacefully since centuries but this harmony was violently disturbed
by an act which ultimately became the catalyst for some of the worst communal riots
witnessed in the Indian history.

The Babri Masjid issue started back in 1949, when a priest claimed to have a vision
of Lord Ram and ended up placing the statues of Hindu deities in the mosque. This
move was ultimately revealed to be the brainchild of the then DM K.K Nayyar,
making it not only religious but also political in nature.

This brings us to the political layers and propagandas underlying the whole Babri
Masjid issue. Some people would argue that this documentary itself is biased in
nature and is nothing more than a propaganda devised by the extreme left, but we
must keep in mind that documentaries are highly subjective in nature and often lean
one side or another when discussing an issue. Since ‘Ram Ke Naam’ is an
investigative documentary, the presented facts can be seen as offensive towards a
particular political or religious segment, but I personally did not get that sentimentt
from it.

Anand Patwardhan does a good job of showing how political factions like BJP, RSS
and VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad) utilise and even manipulate the Hindu
population’s sentiment’s to pave their own road to power. L.K Advani’s tactics in
particular are severely criticised. In some interviews, we see that the common man
wants nothing more than peace and harmony and that Hindus and Muslims want to
coexist, but these things are not paid attention to by the party leaders. In fact, the poor
are not even aware of the political games being played by the higher ups and they in
turn, are blind to the plight of India’s underprivileged. On the other hand, religiously
motivated people who are for the motion of demolishing the Babri Masjid in order to
create a Ram Mandir are unaware of even basic facts about a God they claim to be
doing everything for. This, I believe, does a tremendous job of highlighting the
overall baselessness and futility of these communal rights.

In conclusion, Ram Ke Naam is an intense and eye opening watch.