In Tamil Nadu, a Movie That Says Dalits Are Waging 'Love Jihad' Draws Crowds

'...Draupathi depicts the OBC reaction to Dalit politics. Anger drives the film – a sense of injustice over Dalits having gone too far just as elsewhere some Hindus feel Muslims have gone too far, egged on by political appeasement... Draupathi, the eponymous character, is a village activist. With strong convictions, she mounts campaigns against oil and gas projects and scorns corporates for ‘sucking’ out resources and cultural traditions. She also publishes sting videos showing village women whiling away their time gossiping even as they draw wages for work to be done under the MGNREGA scheme. Her uncle tells Draupathi the scheme has ensured no one is available to work on his farm. She is subsequently attacked by goons and wants her husband to exact revenge. Her attackers are Dalits who run a racquet specialising in what appears to be the Dalit version of ‘love jihad’. Their gang employs good-looking young men riding fancy motorcycles, with iPhones leaping out of their pockets, to lure younger upper-caste women into marriage...'