When #PadmavatiControversy became prime-time ‘news’

The Padmavati row took a deadly turn today. A man, identified as Chetan Saini, was found hanging at Jaipur’s Nahargarh fort. It is not certain if this is a case of murder, but the message next to the body carved on a stone attempts to link it to the ongoing controversy over Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Rs 180-crore film. It read: “We don’t just hang effigies. Padmavati”.

The details of the case are now a matter of police investigation. But the size and momentum the controversy has now assumed begs a question or two of mainstream media outlets that worked as outrage amplifiers.

For the past week or so, prominent mainstream news channels gave wall-to-wall coverage to the #PadmavatiControversy. TV news discussions on leading English channels ranged from name-calling to petty drama (an ABP News anchor dressed up like Rani Padmavati) to fanning communal sentiments in the garb of journalistic questioning. This, in addition to hashtags that made little sense and contributed even less to the debates’ news quotient.

All this, of course, was happening at the cost of real news.

Times Now discussed the Padmavati row in multiple prime-time debates including Can BJP Drag In Padmavati For Votes?, Padmavati Row: Time To Jail The Fringe?, Are Netas Emboldening Violence, Padmavati Row: State Sponsors The Mob? and State Abetting Terror on The Newshour with Rahul Shivshankar. Meanwhile, Arnab Goswami’s Republic TV packaged news debates as Hindu-Muslim Divide Using Padmavati?,  #FringeVsPadmavati and Should Padmavati Be Released?

It was India Today, however, that outshone both Republic TV and Times Now, with multiple Padmavati-related prime-time discussions in at least three of five prime-time shows.

In the show People’s Court, India Today packaged multiple episodes covering a whole range of “news” topics such as BJPvsBhansali, Rana Ayyub Vs BJP MLA: What Is Seditious About Padmavati?, #PadmavatiStreetWar, Politics Over Padmavati and Why Is Government Silent On Hate Speeches And Threats Against Padmavati Cast?, while in its News Today show it covered Padmavati Bullied with Rajdeep Sardesai.

India Today’s Anjana Om Kashyap hosted Padmavati An Epic Controversy and Anti-Padmavati Fire during another prime-time show, To The Point.

Beating Times Now, Republic TV as well as India Today, Mirror Now had nearly 17 Padmavati news packages on its YouTube channel. These included two prime-time discussions by Faye D’Souza: Padmavati VS Goons: Freedom Of Expession Under Threat?, Padmavati Row: BJP Joins The Diktat Chorus, Wants The Movie To Be Banned as well as The Big Story with Avni Raja on Padmavati Row: Bhansali Agrees To Pre-Screen Movie For The Rajputs.

Not to be outdone, NewsX had nearly 32 Padmavati-related news packages, most of which covered the development of the controversy, including senior executive editor Priya Sahgal-hosted The Roundtable, where the panel discussed the Battle over Padmavati. Protests outside the Chittorgarh fort were discussed on Speak out India and again, the Padmavati row was given airtime on 8 Tonight.

Special mention here is reserved for CNN-News18 for its coverage of the Padmavati protests with nearly 40 news packages.

A Padmavati-specific search of NDTV’s YouTube channel showed at least 14 news packages (not as many as CNN-News18 or Mirror Now’s), including exclusive interviews with Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi, reactions from director Bhansali as well as from Bollywood actors. However, apart from Nagma Seher’s discussion on NDTV’s Hindi show Hum Log and Nidhi Razdan’s 13-minute discussion on the show Left, Right and Centre, NDTV seems to have dedicated only one full episode to The Big Row Over Padmavati which was hosted by Vikram Chandra during The Big Fight.

More shocking than the numerous news items on Padmavati were the arguments of “experts” on these shows, which oscillated between insanity, indecency and plain illegality. Sample some of the lunacy here:

Last week, Times Now invited two members of the self-styled Rajput group Karni Sena on its show. While on air, one of the group’s members started brandishing a sword.

“Ye sab tamasha nai chahiye, (such theatrics are not required),” anchor Shivshankar chided him. But shouldn’t he have asked a panellist threatening violence to leave right away?

While it is important that all stakeholders be given space to voice as well as reason out their arguments, it is equally important that news platforms not become a tool for people and groups to threaten violence and spread hate.

In all of this, there was one definite loser on all the shows – the viewer. TV channels dedicated their time and resources towards getting esteemed panellists such as Karni Sena’s state vice-president and Akhand Rajputana Seva Sangh’s leader – people who threaten violence on camera – at cost of pressing issues that merit debates and prime-time focus.

These include the delay in Parliament’s Winter session, allegations raised by Justice Brij Loya’s family about his mysterious death and more than 60,000 farmers gathering in New Delhi to demand fair wages and loan waiver. But maybe we’re expecting a little too much here.