Indian movie theaters are now required by law to play the national anthem By Michael Safi, The Guardian, adapted by Newsela staff on 12.06.16 Word Count 638 Children in India wave the flag in celebration of Independence Day in North Kolkata. A new law will require movie theaters in India to play the national anthem. Photo: Photo by Subir Haider/India Today Group/Getty Images India s Supreme Court has decided to change the way people experience movies. It ordered movie theaters across the country to play the national anthem before films. This is in an effort to encourage citizens to feel loyal to their country. The Court also directed that moviegoers should stand up while the anthem is played. Not doing so would be disrespectful. The judges were responding to a lawsuit claiming the national anthem was being dishonored. The case pointed at movie theaters as an example of this. The national anthem was already required at movie theaters in a few parts of the country. Show The Anthem And Flag Some Respect The Court said that people should show respect to their country's anthem and flag. It also said that the doors should be closed during the anthem. It did not want people entering or leaving while the anthem was playing. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 1
The anthem is called "Jana Gana Mana." It was last ordered to be played in movie theaters across India after the country s 1962 war with China. This was largely ignored by most moviegoers, and the practice was discontinued. Over the last 10 years, Indian movies have tackled more social issues. These have ranged from conflict between religious groups to the safety of girls and women. Fight Between India And Pakistan Spreads To Movies Movie theaters recently got caught up in the fight between India and its neighbor, Pakistan. India is mostly Hindu while Pakistan is mostly Muslim. There has long been tension between these two groups in this area. An Indian film association announced that it was banning Pakistanis from appearing in Indian films. This decision came after 19 Indian soldiers were killed. The people who killed them were suspected to have support from Pakistan. Nationalists reacted favorably to this decision. Nationalism is when leaders base their words and actions on shared ideas about what makes people part of a nation. But in India, religious, ethnic and class divisions make people disagree about who belongs and who doesn't. Nationalist groups threatened to disturb the screening of one Bollywood blockbuster that starred Fawaz Khan, a Pakistani actor. Khan was forced to skip the premiere of the film. He has not returned to India since. Election Triggered Debates Over National Identity In 2014, Narendra Modi was elected prime minister of India. His election has fueled fierce debates over the country s national identity. Modi is a Hindu nationalist. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 2
Some say the rise of Modi s party has emboldened nationalists who have a very narrow idea of what it means to be Indian. Shylashri Shankar studies the Indian Supreme Court. She said the anthem ruling was a bit worrisome. "It is, in a sense, putting its weight behind notions of nationalism and what it means to be Indian," she said. She said she remembered the anthem being played at the movies when she was a child. However, "the notion of the anthem then was different to what it is now, when it is imbued with much more weight. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 3
Some Moviegoers Not Feeling It One cinemagoer in south Delhi, 22-year-old Surabhi, said the order was going against what we go to the movies for. We want to relax, to enjoy ourselves, to spend time with family and friends," she said. "At the beginning of a film it serves no purpose, she said. Furqan, 26, agreed. I don t have to prove my nationalism and patriotism every time I go anywhere. It s coming into our private spaces, our private lives, she said. Nitin Datar is the head of the Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association. He welcomed the Supreme Court s order. He thinks that movie theaters will not have trouble making people stand. There are a few cases when people don't stand for the national anthem, he said. But in general, he said that "the public respect the anthem." This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 4
Quiz 1 What is the author's purpose for including information about Fawaz Khan skipping the premiere of his film? to show that a majority of Indian people are in support of the Supreme Court ruling to show that most actors in Bollywood movies do not go to screenings to show how angry nationalists were about Pakistanis appearing in Indian films to show how much he supported the film association's ban on Pakistani actors 2 What do Shylashri Shankar and Nitin Datar DISAGREE about in the article? whether to worry about people being forced to stand for the national anthem whether standing for the national anthem shows respect for India whether the Supreme Court had the right to rule about the national anthem whether the public has an opinion about standing for the national anthem 3 Look at the photograph at the top of the article. How does it relate to the article? It shows an example of Indians honoring their national anthem at a movie. It shows an example of Indian people celebrating religious diversity. It shows an example of Indians and Pakistanis sharing their differences. It shows an example of Indians celebrating pride in their country. 4 According to the graphic at the bottom of the article, 14 percent of Indians follow which religion? Hinduism Islam Christianity Sikhism This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 5
Answer Key 1 What is the author's purpose for including information about Fawaz Khan skipping the premiere of his film? to show that a majority of Indian people are in support of the Supreme Court ruling to show that most actors in Bollywood movies do not go to screenings to show how angry nationalists were about Pakistanis appearing in Indian films to show how much he supported the film association's ban on Pakistani actors 2 What do Shylashri Shankar and Nitin Datar DISAGREE about in the article? whether to worry about people being forced to stand for the national anthem whether standing for the national anthem shows respect for India whether the Supreme Court had the right to rule about the national anthem whether the public has an opinion about standing for the national anthem 3 Look at the photograph at the top of the article. How does it relate to the article? It shows an example of Indians honoring their national anthem at a movie. It shows an example of Indian people celebrating religious diversity. It shows an example of Indians and Pakistanis sharing their differences. It shows an example of Indians celebrating pride in their country. 4 According to the graphic at the bottom of the article, 14 percent of Indians follow which religion? Hinduism Islam Christianity Sikhism This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 6