Alternative facts became a real issue
PADMAVATI BECAME REAL Some historians have gone hoarse in the past one year – ever since the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s upcoming film Padmavati was vandalised in January – explaining that the first mention of Rani Padmini can only be traced back to Malik Muhammad Jayasi’s 16th century poetry, but it wasn’t enough to change popular belief. For many, the queen is an epitome of Rajput honour, and all hell broke loose when it was rumoured that Bhansali’s film showed a romance between Padmini and Alauddin Khilji in a dream sequence. The filmmakers tried their best to quell such rumours, but the first promos of the film had the Rajputs up in arms again over the depiction of the queen and alleged distortion of facts. The film is as of now awaiting the Censor Board certificate for release.
THE TAJ BECAME CONTROVERSIAL
2017 was a difficult year for the Taj Mahal. First, the Uttar Pradesh government reportedly did not include it in the list of heritage sites thatt were to benefit from a newly-announced state fund for their upkeep. Then, it was not included in a list of tourist attrractions in UP. No sooner had chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, cleeared the air, than the Taj found itself at the centre of anotheer debate. Members of some Hindu outfits chanted Shivaa Chalisa at the Taj and said that if namaz could be held at the TajT – there is a mosque at the heritage site complex – then Shiva chalisa could also be read there.
SOCIAL MEDIA WARRIORS FOUGHT UNTRUTH HS
There were dubious, misleading and false reports, videos, foorwards and statements flooding the social media. Apart from influencing the political discourse and triggering communal violence, these stories resulted in explosive situations when cirrculated in an already charged atmosphere. And thus emergeed the fake news warriors – organisations such as AltNews, Boomm and SM Hoaxslayer – who took it upon themselves to monitor social media, identify such information, verify it and communicate the truth.
SATIRE EMERGED AS A MEANS OF PROTES ST (HUMANS OF HINDUTVA, COMEDIANS ON THE WEB, UN OFFICIAL SUBRAMANIAN SWAMY ETC)
If you are funnny online, you may be threatened, thrashed and even arressted. But that hasn’t stopped dissent disguised as humourr. 2017 was the year of online satire. Parody accounts and anonyymous Facebook pages like Humans of Hindutva and Unofficcial Subramanian Swamy played with facts and fiction too, picking news from the day and adding a twist of wit to it. Simmilarly, Twitter pages like @roflgandhi and @RealHistoryPic commbine real images or events with bizarre takes.