Nov 16 2021 to Nov 16 2021 7 p.m.

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Event Description

A short film based on a conversation between Periyar E.V. Ramasamy and Mahatma Gandhi.

About this event

The Icon and the Iconoclast, is a short film directed by Vilasini Ramani, based on a conversation that reportedly happened between Periyar E.V. Ramasamy and Mahatma Gandhi in the year 1927. Over this conversation, Periyar, a rationalist anti-caste leader from South India and the key figure of the Dravidian Movement, and Mahatma Gandhi, the well-known pacifist leader of the Indian Independence Movement, discuss their views on religion. Where Gandhi, a believing Hindu, argued that it was possible to reform Hinduism from within, Periyar, an atheist who was sharply critical of religion in general, claimed that Hinduism had to be removed for any reform to be lasting. The film also shows how two thinkers with radically different views on religion could nevertheless have a respectful dialogue with each other.

The Icon and the Iconoclast features Kishore as Periyar, Salmin Sheriff as Gandhi and Swami as S. Ramanathan, a close associate of Periyar.

Karthick Ram Manoharan, whose project "Freedom from Caste: The Political Thought of Periyar E.V. Ramasamy in a Global Context" has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No 895514, is the project consultant for this film.

Manoharan will introduce the film, placing the conversation between Periyar and Gandhi in historical context. Following the screening, there will be an interactive session with the director and the actors.

This event is a part of the series 'RICHES: Resurgence in Commemoration, Humour, Exchange and Storytelling' led by Professor Meena Dhanda at the University of Wolverhampton. This series with six events reveals untapped resources, harnessing our resilience to recover energy in trying times. It unlocks resources of remnant ideas, unused skills, and buried thoughts with a spirit of defiance.

This event is part of the Being Human festival, the UK’s only national festival of the humanities, taking place 11–20 November 2021. For further information please see beinghumanfestival.org.

Join the online event on 16 November 2021.