Can grassroots and mobile activism achieve an improved democracy in India?
"An Insignificant Man" delves more into grassroots political activism in India and the role of social media and activist representation. A consistent lack of politician accountability has ignited political activism and the formation of AAP, a political party that uses a more grassroots campaign approach, which proves effective when different media literacy exists and political corruption is rampant. AAP demands democracy, but what exactly is democracy? Arvind Kejriwal, party leader, and the rest of its members grapple with conflicting answers to this question throughout the documentary. We see that the media and social media also serve as political tools for curating the politician’s image. However, they can be used to spread false information, through slandering other parties, as seen with the tampered video of an AAP member allegedly taking a bribe, or even allowing individual politicians a platform to announce unrealistic promises. The documentary itself also seems to be anti-status quo in its form, using a non-traditional format with no talking heads. This allows the audience more room to form their own criticisms and shift their opinions through a critical lens.
-Michelle