E-Paper
Rang de... in respectful way
STORM RAGED over the Aamir Khan-starrer Rang De Basanti has forced the top brass of Indian army to appeal to people to respect ethos of the forces. Projection of armed forces in objectionable ways in Hindi movies is not new. ?I objected to the scene in Silsila, wherein, Jaya Bachchan was shown standing on a tarmac,? said Air Vice Marshal (retired) A Chaturvedi. He was the Joint Director Public Relations, Ministry of Defence.
STORM RAGED over the Aamir Khan-starrer Rang De Basanti has forced the top brass of Indian army to appeal to people to respect ethos of the forces.
Projection of armed forces in objectionable ways in Hindi movies is not new. “I objected to the scene in Silsila, wherein, Jaya Bachchan was shown standing on a tarmac,” said Air Vice Marshal (retired) A Chaturvedi. He was the Joint Director Public Relations, Ministry of Defence.
Air Vice Marshal said the services were strict about depiction of scenes in movies, and how could anybody gain access to a tarmac. The office of Director Public Relations has a set of regulations on projection of armed forces in Hindi movies, but more often the regulations are violated in a bid to sensationalise the movies.
As regards the Rang De Basanti controversy, the soldier said it was not proper for him to comment on the movie as it was yet to be released. But he said that the way the armed forces personnel are projected in movies was not proper.
“It is believed that during peacetime soldiers indulge only in drinking and merry making, but its not so,” he quipped and added the Indian Air Force was very strict about consumption of liquor.
“This is evident from the discipline maintained in the messes,” added the Air Vice Marshal.
He categorically stated that before projection on any of the three services (Indian army, Indian Air Force and Navy), the film has to be cleared by the office of the Director Public Relations under the MoD. Air Vice Marshal Chaturvedi was perhaps, the first Air Force officer to serve as the Deputy Director Public Relations.
He feels that adverse projection of armed forces tarnishes the image of services and also tends to demoralise the younger generation from joining the armed forces. Even the top brass of the Indian Air Force has shown its concern that such adverse projection would demoralise the young pilots and also discourage the younger generation.
Air Vice Marshal (retired) Nath Rameshwar expressed his anger, “I don't think we must lend any credence to such fictions.”
About the movie Rang De Basanti, he said whatever has come to me through newspapers were nowhere near the truth. In fact the Indian Air Force takes proper of the dependents of those who sacrificed their lives for the cause of the nation.
Air Vice Marshall (retired) G M Viswanathan said the issues were trivial to be taken cognisance of.
However, he specified that MIG-21 is a safe account but a demanding one due to its high performance characteristics. there are problems of spares delay the process of procurement & on account of price negotiation. It is more concerned about budget & costs than the need for safe operations. regular provisioning of account spares is a grey area & it affects account maintenance. the air force takes adequate steps for good maintenance of account.
There are better methods of projecting the corrupt politicians than mig-21 crashes. the morale of pilots flying mig-21 would be adversely affected. The services are a serious institution and have many more things to look into. While Air Vice Marshal (Retired) R K Dixit said that he would not be able to comment unless and until he sees the movie.
