Chennai: In the wake of state police officers blaming the social media for the recent inhuman lynching incidents targeting Hindi-speaking strangers and negativity about social media saying it leads to extortion, black mail, sexual abuse and whole lot of things, here comes a short film emphasising how social media can also play a fruitful role in reducing the incidence of crime, if used in the right way.
The three-minute short film, ‘Rajeeni’ went viral all over the Internet capturing nearly one million views and over 25,000 shared by Monday evening. It is based on the recent suicide of a 21-year-old taxi driver at Old Mahabalipuram Road who was allegedly roughed by the traffic police constables for not wearing seat belt, following which he set himself on fire.
In the film, a taxi driver can be seen being beaten up by traffic policemen for questioning their authority and the driver in a desperate attempt to raise awareness of the abuse by the traffic cops tries self-immolation (as it actually happened at OMR). But, in a heart-warming ending, help comes from the public who apparently watch the incident being streamed live on Facebook by the woman passenger.
The passenger is the hero in the film and carries an important message for the present generation. She not only brings to book the cops and saves the driver but also tells the audience that social media could be a powerful tool for positive change. And she tells the driver not to be foolish to attempt suicide when it is still possible to fight back.
“I made the film for competition to inspire youngsters who use social media but to our dismay, it did not get shortlisted. Luck came to us on May 11, when actor Premji liked our film and shared it on his social media accounts. Within an hour, it went viral and the crew is flabbergasted at the response,” said the director, Karthik. Most people know him as Karthick O Positive (social media handle name).
He further added that the response, particularly from cab drivers was overwhelming. Talking on the role social media plays, he said recently even the government is opting for social media to spread awareness on a lot of topics and if used right, it is the most powerful tool, he feels.
