Report on Article 15: Film's Portrayal of Social Issues in India

This report analyzes the 2019 Indian Hindi film 'Article 15,' which delves into the investigation of three missing teenage girls from a Dalit village. The film critically examines Article 15 of the Indian constitution, which upholds equality and prohibits discrimination. Through the perspective of a newly appointed police officer, the film highlights the persistence of caste-based discrimination and social inequality in contemporary India, particularly in the context of globalization and development. The analysis explores the film's narrative techniques, its representation of different social strata, and its commentary on the disparity between the privileged upper castes and the marginalized lower castes, who are often denied basic rights and opportunities. The report references academic sources to support the arguments, including the works of Goldin (2018), Appadurai (1990), and Agrawal (2014), to provide a comprehensive understanding of the film's social and political significance, including its strengths and weaknesses.

Running head : ARTICLE 15
Article 15
Name of the student :
Name of the university
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Article 15 is a 2019 Indian Hindi language film which follows the investigation which
starts when three teenage girl goes missing from the Dalit (lowe caste) village. The film basically
deals with Article 15, which is enshrined in the constitution of India, which uphold equality and
prohibits any discrimination. The central character of the movie is SP Aryan Ranjan who hails
from abroad and is newly appointed, and there is other supporting caste as well.
The film represents that globalisation and the development process is not equal in all
parts of the Indian subcontinent. The film through the eyes of the ACP shows that after more
than seventy years of independence the concept of the untouchability and minorities still exist
where the people of this section are still denied their basic livelihood and always suppressed by
the upper caste. Throughout the film, it is observed that the there is two sections of the Indian
one which is experienced by the upper caste who are highly educated and have benefitted from
the globalisation. At the same time, on the other end there are lower strata of society ironically
though these people are only the driver of the country without them the proper mechanism
cannot be implemented in the society however they are the only section who are neglected and
denied off their basic existence (Goldin, 2018). This kind of problem is generally due to the
global interaction and the tension which occurs due to cultural homogenization and
hetrogenization which is also the result of the empirical facts (Appadurai, 1990).
The core strength of the film lies in its simple storytelling while representing a complex
and grave idea. As globalisation is largely understood makes the world small and bring together
the different corners of the world together. However, through the film, it is observed that
globalisation has not reached to the people in this poverty-stricken people. The grim of the
Lalgoan in Uttar Pradesh is an area where people and individuals are not known by their work
but by their caste. More than the name of the person, the caste is the relevance. To keep the Dalit

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people in their limits, they punish the girls who just asked for little increase in their payment.
They not only punish this person but set an example to the entire community by hanging them.
The complex challenges that are faced in the heartland of the country are widely depicted. Here
within a village community are apart the lower strata of the society has been thoroughly denied
of any opportunity to benefit the smooth functioning of the society. The storyline that the film
tells us the real face of the society where the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting
poorer (Agrawal, 2014). I think the tone of the film was quite angry and did not leave much for
the audience to interpret.
The film is gritty, grimy and grey, which brings a chill to the bone and the palpable
tension which is in the air. However, I think the political angle in the film have been overstuffed
in the layers and the political intricacies as well as the multitude in which the characters are set
in. The representation of the character in some cases is stereotyped especially the native accent
however overall the film has done a good deal in the representation of the different strata in the
film

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References
Agrawal, T. (2014). Gender and caste-based wage discrimination in India: some recent
evidence. Journal for Labour Market Research, 47(4), 329-340.
Appadurai, A. (1990). Disjuncture and difference in the global cultural economy. Theory,
culture & society, 7(2-3), 295-310.
Goldin, I. (2018). Development: a very short introduction (Vol. 557). Oxford University Press.