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Citizens United: Bengali artists unite for 'anti-fascist' tune ahead of assembly polls
Actors Sabyasachi Chakraborty, Anirban Bhattacharya, and Parambrata Chattopadhyay make an appearance, along with singers Anindya Chatterjee and Anupam Roy, among others.
With only a day to go before the first polling booths in West Bengal commence activities, the hyperpartisan political climate in the state continues to intensify. This time, top Bengali artists — actors, singers, and theatre personalities — have come together for an 'anti-fascist' tune in time for the upcoming assembly elections.
Posted on a YouTube channel by the name of 'Citizens United - Nijeder Mote Nijeder Gaan' (the last bit is in Bengali, which roughly translates to "our song, in our way"), the video features some of the most celebrated artists from West Bengal. Actors Sabyasachi Chakraborty, Anirban Bhattacharya, and Parambrata Chattopadhyay make an appearance. So do singers Anindya Chatterjee, Anupam Roy, and theatre personalities Suman Mukhopadhyay and Kaushik Sen. Also a part of the joint effort are artists Piya Chakraborty, Santilal Mukherjee, and Surangana Bandyopadhyay.
The short is directed by Riddhi Sen, Kaushik's son, and theatre actor Rwitobroto Mukherjee. It went viral on social media, and as of this writing, YouTube logs 108,438 views on the video.
That the song is being referred to as 'anti-fascist' is hardly a stretch; it carries montages of Nazi Germany interspersed with visuals and 'reports' from present-day India. Not once is any of India's political parties mentioned by name, but at one point, singers Anupam and Anindya go, "I looked at Goebbels' mirror... spotted your reflection there." The video does, however, carry a newspaper template of a time when the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was banned in India.
The song highlights several other aspects, including 'demonisation of knowledge', women's safety, high fuel prices, and competing notions of citizenship and nationalism.
The first phase of polling in West Bengal will start on Saturday when the elections for the 30 seats covering all constituencies from the districts of Purulia and Jhargram and segments of Bankura, Purba Medinipur, and Paschim Medinipur will be held.
Elections to the 294-member West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases starting from March 27 with the final round of voting taking place on April 29. The counting of votes will take place on May 2. The state is likely to witness a triangular contest this time with TMC, Congress-Left alliance and the BJP in the fray.
