“Moral policing is not just a policing on morals, but also has a say on sexual behaviour, intellectual behaviour and governing behaviour. It is a sign of silencing,” said Shiv Visvanathan, social scientist, here on Saturday.
He was delivering a lecture on the concluding day of communication fest ‘Article 19’ organised by the School of Communication, Manipal University, here.
Mr. Visvanathan spoke about silence and its contribution to violence. He encouraged the students of communication to break the silence to truly embody the spirit of freedom of speech and expression. Giving the example of Tamil author and scholar Perumal Murugan, who recently announced his exit from the writing field, Mr. Visvanathan said that silence was still alive and it had curtailed several freedoms.
Referring to stern police regulations in Manipal, Mr. Visvanathan said students should protest against something they did not believe in. They should stand up for one another as well. The students should discuss the issue of regulations with the Superintendent of Police K. Annamalai. “Bring him [Mr. Annamalai] over and have a talk with him, hear what he has to say too,” he said. Earlier, speaking on the topic of “Contemporary film making in new media,” Bob Swaim, American director based in France, said that he felt like a detective searching for pieces of puzzle when he made the documentary Lumières Noires.
The documentary talked about the first international meeting of black writers and intellectuals from the African diaspora, which was held in Paris. “There was only a photograph of this meeting and no big mass media houses had reported on it. It felt like an adventure to put this documentary together,” he said.
Curtains came down on the fest with the Mexican themed ‘Cinco De Mayo’ funfair, an informal entertainment evening. With the entire college decorated according to the theme, the night was filled with food and game stalls. It was time for the students to let their hair down and celebrate the end of the fest.
He encourages students to break silence to embody the spirit of freedom and expression
‘Protest against things you do not believe in and stand up for each other’
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