Research News Last updated 08 July
A groundbreaking new book by a Birmingham City University (BCU) researcher is calling for Bollywood to rethink its portrayal of certain castes in Indian culture.
Dalit Representations in Popular Hindi Cinema, by Dr Vishal Chauhan, is one of the first academic books to investigate the portrayal of the Dalits in popular Hindi cinema also known as Bollywood.
Indian society continues to follow a hierarchical caste system, with Dalits at the bottom. The group make up around 22% of India’s population but are still referred to as “untouchables”.
Traditionally, they have been segregated from the upper castes, do not get equal access to education or jobs, and are often victims of exploitation, abuse and violence.
A 2012 survey found that 93% of Dalit families lived below the poverty line in the Indian state of Karnataka.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau of India, nearly 50,000 cases of violence against Dalits are recorded each year.
“Dalits have been struggling against caste discrimination and violence for many years,” said Dr Chauhan, from BCU’s School of English and Media.
“The dominant castes employ various strategies to justify caste hierarchy and its distinctions, including through media and cinema.”
Hindi cinema remains a powerful and influential cultural medium in India.
- In 2019, Hindi films sold an estimated 341 million tickets in India,
- In 2023, 44% of the Indian box office revenue was generated by Hindi films - with Hollywood films accounting for just 9%.
Dr Chauhan says popular Hindi cinema still being used to reinforce stereotypes.
“Dalits are still represented in negative ways such as being intellectually inferior or relying on those in higher castes,” he said.
“It’s important to expose the links between entertainment and power structures that defend and justify caste hierarchies and discrimination to campaign for better and more diverse representations and a more equal society.”