10 Bollywood Movies Every Indian Politician Must Watch

List of 10 movies that are very relevant to the state of affairs in India today that every politician must watch.

Matrubhoomi - A nation without women: This hard hitting movie deals with female infanticide, foeticide, and gender balance. It shows what India would be with half its population wiped out due to the alarming rise in crime against women. Set in 2050 AD, the movie portrays what would happen to a society without women.

Aarakshan: Every year a million students across the country prepare to enter college. A lot of deserving candidates are left in the lurch despite giving their best shot. The movie accurately touches upon the growing rift between students from the reserved category and general category, and the struggles students from both these societies face while seeking admissions. Politicians should watch this movie to know the impact of their decisions on the future of the country.

Swades: We, the People: The movie was an attempt to show what brain drain has done to the nation. On one hand we have Indians holding positions of responsibility in organisations like NASA, and on the other hand his native village in India lives without basic amenities like water and electricity. When a scientist returns to his village, he cannot adjust and makes every attempt possible to being change. It is time our politicians should take charge and improve the way the rural India lives.

Peepli Live: Most of India still lives in villages and farmer suicides are something the politicians haven’t been taking very seriously. A satirical comedy, this movie depicts the lengths to which a farmer would go to protect his land. Eventually he loses his land to the bank and doesn’t even get compensation because his apparent death caused by fire was an accident. Justice for the farmers is something that is talked about, but it is time our politicians started taking action upon it.

Bombay: Centred on the events during the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992 that led to riots in Mumbai, this movie shows the impact of such barbarous acts on the common man. The movie shows a Hindu-Muslim couple that has raised its children with both the traditions. The constant fear and threat under which the couple lives with its children is heart-rending. Every politician should watch this movie to know how their decisions can ruin the way the people live in society.

Parzania: Based on the communal riots in Godhra, this movie deals with the disappearance of a young boy in Gujarat and how the family runs pillar to post to look for their missing son. Dedicated to the victims of communal riots, politicians should watch this movie to know how the people who voted them to power suffer under their rule.

My Brother Nikhil: The movie talks about a time when AIDS awareness in India was very low. The AIDS patient is shown abandoned by society and forced into isolation. Although excessive campaigning over the years has definitely changed the way we see the disease today, there is still a lot that can be done for those who suffer. Beyond the politics of religion and dynasty, politicians should watch this movie to make health policies better the many people in India who are battling this life threatening disease every day and make them feel accepted.

Chandni Bar: This movie depicts the dangerous world of prostitution, crime and the underworld. A woman is raped, forced into bar dancing and lives a miserable life until a gangster decides to defend her honour. Just when life starts looking up for her, her children are arrested for crimes they haven’t committed and forced into the ugly business of prostitution. This is probably the untold story of thousands of girls who are misguided into this dreadful profession. Every politician who talks about women’s development must watch this movie to know the real struggles of women caught in the web of the underworld.

Zakhm: A story about the great Hindu-Muslim divide in India, this movie is about a woman who was burned to death by Muslim rioters while leaving a church. In her early life she wasn’t allowed to marry a Hindu man because she belonged to the Muslim community. She hides her faith throughout her life and bears the man’s children out of marriage. The growing religious intolerance that most politicians openly preach has adverse effects on millions in the country. Politicians must watch this movie, the story of a number of Indians who are affected by every decision they make propagating religious disparity.

A Wednesday – India has always lived under the threat of terrorists. A Wednesday is the story of a common man who bears these terrorist activities and sees the criminals go unpunished. The man rises one day to take revenge from terrorists single-handedly and decides to kill them all for the many families who lost their dear ones for no fault of theirs. We have seen stern decisions being made against terrorists of late, more and more politicians should watch this movie to understand what the public goes through after terrorist attacks.