Conscience of the Colonised

Ram Madhvani never shows the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 in all its brutality but the events leading up to it and after are proof enough of colonial cruelty. From rumours of white women being assaulted by brown men, to the reality of Indians being asked to crawl their way through certain streets, he is able to recreate the charged atmosphere of that era. Based on five years of research and Madhvani’s personal exploration of what it means to be colo­nised, the series creates the fictional hero at the heart of the plot, Kantilal Sahni. Sahni exposes the conspiracy behind the massacre to the Hunter Commission which was set out to ostensibly provide justice to the Indians who had suffered. Madhvani did extensive workshops with the actors before the shoot which lasted for a methodical 45 days (he edited as he filmed). Mostly shot in Amritsar, the series is a reminder of how art can help heal old wounds.

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