ENTERTAINMENT

Diversification of mainstream entertainment                                                       

Mainstream entertainment has conventionally been the domain of the Hindi Film Industry. Whether it be cinema or music, much of what has been consumed has been through this lens. But today’s Hindi film industry has undergone a shift in content. Whether it be in music with the meteoric rise of ‘Gully Rap’ or by music producers such as Nucleya. Even the cinema we consume now has shifted out of the metropole into the smaller cities like Bareilly ki Barfi or Stree. This begs the question, what is setting the new norms for entertainment in India?

Tackling social issues                                                                                                 

From the time of Mother India, many Indian movies have sought to tackle social issues, whether it be the question of pregnancy (Badhai Ho) or caste discrimination (Masaan and Article 15). Cinema has always played a major role in starting conversations or raising questions on subjects that may have been deemed uncomfortable by the masses. Questions on whether cinema or actors should be political have been raised time and again. The panel would, therefore, explore the dynamics of the relationship between cinema and society and reinterrogate the role of cinema and social change.