When stories need a comma not a fullstop…..

A positive aspect about the lockdown is that I am back into books and movies. Another good thing is that this period has got me thinking about facts whose existence I had not even considered and given a second thought before. This brought me to a question: Don’t you think stories and movies need to be narrated from a dual perspective? Don’t you think we constantly glorify our heroes a little too much and this automatically undermines the other side of the tale?

For instance in my opinion Arachne didn’t deserve the harsh punishment that Athena inflicted upon her. Moving on we completely forget to appreciate the hare’s speed, agility and its spirit of accepting any challenge as whenever we hear the story we only recall the tortoise’s wit and its slow and steady nature. I admit that I am a little inspired by Anand Neelakantan who has given great epics a whole new aspect by writing from the perspective of the antagonists (Ravana, Duryodhana and so on) but the main point that I would like to establish is this:

“Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into today’s world. Hence to make sure it is rational we need to turn it upside down and introspect from the other side as well.”

A commonly placed argument is the fact that people look up to their heroes as they truly get inspired from them; their ability to fight innumerable odds with an exuberant spirit and bring happiness to the masses. We also idolize our heroes because sometimes we see that particular side of them which we are often unable to showcase in our real lives (but you have to admit that the action and romance scenes are too cheesy sometimes). Ultimately our main justification is that our life lacks the magic that the hero is able to create and so let us spend at least three hours of our day in solace, away from the nagging miseries and difficulties.

I don’t dismiss these facts but I will definitely not stop with them. Before being a follower

you have to don the role of a thinker. For this you need the complete story. Earlier I used to give credit to the negative characters simply because they are the only ones who are instrumental in bringing out the best in our beloved heroes. However now I feel that they deserve a segment too; a part that focuses on their story, the trials and that they had to face and most importantly the reason that actually led them to turn negative and follow the path of destruction.

Sorry heroines, comedians and support characters but this article is not for you as I know that there are many out there genuinely concerned about your rights and are fighting to give you more attention and screen space. What makes me sad is that in the name of running behind the unexplored we fail to give a glance and support what is present in front of us. It is like those times when we have a preset notion about certain food items and throw it in the dustbin without giving it a try.

Please don’t misunderstand what I am trying to propose. Also don’t think that I sympathize with them and that I am justifying their actions. All I am saying is that Voldemort and Thanos should also have a say in the story before we jump to a conclusion. We only know the Varna system to have created disparities and to have bred discrimination. However the same system brought in an organization that was earlier lacking and it in fact decreased poverty in a way as there was guaranteed employment. Kronos who is the villain in the entire Percy Jackson series was in fact the God of time and there was a festival called Kronia which was held in Athens and was this was in fact celebrating the harvest season. The point is a story becomes merely an opinion when it just portrayed in one angle.

My final arguments are this: every person has an equal share of goodness and badness within them. While it is okay to live in a world with predesigned views and formulated theories, the power to make decisions should lie in our hand. All storytellers are entitled to narrate incidents in their own way and all the listeners and readers have the right to take their own stand. What I am finally trying to convey is this:

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is high time to pause and reflect before you come to a conclusion. The thorn in the rose bush wants your attention too. ”