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Mimesis, the Dramatics Society of Amity School of Languages staged a magnificent street theatre act titled ‘Afwaah’ to underscore drawbacks of pedalling misinformation. The play was performed under the mentorship of Director, ASL, Prof ( Dr ) Kum Kum Ray. The play brought out effectively the manner in which rumours are turned into news pieces which are eventually passed on to the public having rather dangerous ramifications.
Fake news a burning problem across the world has led to organizations gradually taking note of it. It has had a drastic impact on image and life. It has the ability to mar your reputation or even make living very difficult for the person affected by it.
Now that the country and perhaps the entire world is waking up to the perils of a fake news or post truth era, the street play highlighted the problems in a creative fashion at Amity University Lucknow campus.
The mini amphitheatre next to the canteen had a sizeable number of students and faculty to witness the show during the lunch break. Those present acknowledged the students and appreciated the efforts put in to drive home a point. The play and the actors were well received for research and depiction that caught the fancy of all.
Having references in the Ramayana and Mahabharata era, it is only now that the country and perhaps the entire world is awakening to the perils of a fake news or post truth era.
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The play is significant given that we live in times when the media is less neutral and more opinionated. Hence, the chances of lies getting amplified increases manifold. Viral news which is a much talked about aspect in the world, especially on social media spreads before the batting of an eyelid.
Saying half truth is fake news and hence in a connected world, one message when sent to multiple persons there are broader issues at play.
The play in context of post truth talks about how one influences the viewer wrongly. In India it is increasingly obvious one wrong information can prove to be a killer.
The play underlines why terms like Whatsapp Universities have been coined to speak of the larger malaise of misinformation, given the very reliance of newsrooms and journalists on Whatsapp.
The actors of the play do make it a part of the act that fake news divides on religious lines. The theatre group stars say even modern day politics is witness to the fake it to make it culture.
Rumours become accepted as truth which is why it is felt that news has the power to make truth into false and vice versa.
When women refuse a proposal or relation goes wrong, the character assassination of women happens by virtue of wrong information or maligning her.
To quote the play and it’s ending lines – Soch ki bulandi honi chahiye, Pyaas Sach ki honi chahiye. This is followed by Dushyant Kumar’s Ho Gayi Pirpanjaal si which echoes in the courtyard as the play comes to a close.
In recent years, the peddling of fake news via social media platforms/whatsapp has been a factor in inciting violence in India. Only recently Whatsapp had to rework its policy in a bid to ensure sharing on the messaging giant is done responsibly. Reportedly 29 precious lives were lost over rumours.
Studies show there are 355 million internet users in India, roughly 27 percent of the population. The country is the second highest in terms of internet usage after China globally.
77 percent of urban users and 92 percent of rural users consider mobile phone as the primary device for accessing internet.
India reportedly has 160 million of WhatsApp’s one billion-plus monthly active users, 148 million Facebook users and over 22 million Twitter accounts.
It is only pertinent for more such creative ventures to be put to use so that the average junta in India gets to become aware of why he or she should stick to old school ways of news consumption.
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