What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
43% of the rape cases filed in 2018 were found false during investigation: Rajasthan police
India’s Sons is a documentary film that traces the journey, ordeals and escape of men who were falsely accused of a rape charge in India. It’s a first person account of men and families who bore the brunt of being called a rapist and a rapist’s family, only to be eventually acquitted of the said crime after years of trial, on the basis of credible evidence proving beyond doubt that they were falsely accused. The bottom line being that while we need strict laws to stop heinous crimes like rape in our country, we must ensure that these laws are not misused by anyone.
“I was constantly observing how this stringent rape law was being abused left, right and centre. With dowry, people can understand it is still a matrimonial dispute, anything could have gone wrong but rape is a heinous crime. I thought somebody really needs to address this (issue); somebody really needs to talk about it. That is when I decided to make this documentary, so this conversation can start and rightful measures can be taken by our lawmakers and innocent lives are not destroyed”, said the maker of India’s Sons, Deepika Narayan Bharadwaj.
The laws against rape in India were amended after the Nirbhaya case in 2012 to deliver fast and speedy justice to rape victims. But in recent years, it has been observed that these laws have been misused by some for personal revenge. Shonee Kapoor, the producer of the documentary said, “This documentary has more to do with my commitment towards men’s rights because this issue is related to men’s rights. That is when I decided I would produce this movie. Later, I realised that movies and books have more shelf life than a dharna or a news article or even a judgement, unless it is a path breaking judgement. These movies have the tendency to shape opinions much more than a single article or a single news piece.”
The New Indian caught up with the docu-film team in Delhi recently. “When we thought of making this film, initially I was a little hesitant. But after doing the research and coming across such shocking data that was the time when I decided to be a part of this project. There will be an audience who will accept it; there will be an audience who will comment on it; there will be an audience who will ridicule it but I think we have made our point and that is what we can do. So, as the saying goes: Karmanye Vadhikaraste… So, we have done what we felt like,” he shared.
On the audience reaction to the documentary, Deepika said that it was after immense research and in depth data analysis, they decided to portray it on screen. “It’s on them if they want to completely reject it or if they want to completely accept it. We are not expecting people to think that all the rape cases are false or anything like that. All that we are trying to tell people is that there is a problem and it needs to be solved because it’s not serving any purpose.”
According to Deepika, after the amendment of laws post Nirbhaya case, people have been one sided mostly, they do not want to consider what the accused has to say. “Also, it is written in the law that you do not have to look at the evidence of the accused. So, it has become all the more difficult for those falsely accused men to prove their case,” she argued.
