Phantom India

with all its glory, all its issues and from neutral lenses. Louis Malle spent over 6 months and travelled from north to south and explores things which no one has covered in this way. There is a sequence in the second episode of the documentary, which goes on for like 20 minutes, where Louis Malle is absolutely awe struck by the art of Bharatnatyam dance and everything around it. It's just absolute bliss to watch that whole sequence. But watching that he also questions how bizarre this indian religious system is, where on one hand it has Religion hierarchy, untouchability, discrimination but then there is Bharatnatyam which is purest form of devotion in such a meditative form but with full expression, where the devotee interacts or express her feelings with god without speaking a single word, that's real essence of Hinduism and not everything else. In the third episode he questions the Indian temple system, how the religion has become a way of business and exploitation from its devotees. Today these temples and the people who run it are the most rich. And who profits most from it? Mostly the Brahmins who run most temples, another case of economic inequality because of caste system and hierarchy. God is for everyone, but its circus is only run by people in higher castes. In the fourth episode he explores Peasants/Farmers of land and sea, their working methods and conditions, also the ideological differences within communist parties in india. In the fifth episode Louis Malle deep dives into the complex discriminative caste system of india, especially the untouchability and thoughts of purity and impurity. From drinking water to eating to living to working how caste hierarchy affects every single thing in the society, especially in villages where you put impressions in large. He also showcases the judicial system of villages, the panchayat which is mainly regulated by rich land owners who always do their own Monopoly and exploit poor farmers for their own benefits. In the sixth episode he explores lesser known or unknown communities which are slowly getting fades, such as the Bondo tribe, Toga tribe, and Jews in india. It shows a totally different side of india even though we didn't know it existed. One of my favourite episodes. And in the final episode, Louis Malle explores mumbai, a city where we are the biggest contrast of people from richest to richest and poorest living together, with lots of religious tension and still seen as the future city and pride of india