A music video created by some of Bengal’s young artistes warned people against the politics of hate ahead of the Assembly elections. Titled Nijeder Mawte Nijeder Gaan (Our song in our way), the video has had 6 million views since its release on March 24. Actor Riddhi Sen, 22, had collaborated with friends and colleagues Rwitobroto Mukherjee and Surangana Bandyopadhyay, for the project. Sen writes on what prodded him to take a stand.

Our country is going through one of the darkest times because of the uncontrollable second wave of Covid-19.

Thousands are gasping for breath, hospital beds are full, crematoriums are awake through the night. Courts have held the central government responsible for bringing this on and the roots for this crisis lie long back.

The coronavirus has exposed a flawed system like never before. It exposed the government’s lack of efficiency to handle a health emergency. Instead of strengthening our health-care system and our economy, thousands of crores were spent to buy a jet for our respected Prime Minister’s foreign travels. Crores were spent on building a statue and temple and in arranging a jamboree to please the then US President; not to mention demonetisation that had set our economy back by years.

Amid such a crisis, the suppression of dissent by brute force, arrest of activists, increasing violence on Muslims, Dalits and women, rampaging the social media by the IT cell’s shadow warriors and spending money like water on Bengal elections reflected one thing - this central government did not care about citizens.

Just like symptoms of Covid-19, there are symptoms of fascism, provided by history. January 2021 onwards, Bengal saw many of them. Polarisation became Bengal’s political narrative, shamelessly.

During such a time (actor) Anirban Bhattacharya wrote the lyrics of Nijeder Mawte Nijeder Gan. The music was composed by Subhadeep Guha. The song rang a bell inside us. We all felt the urge to voice the fact that loving one’s country doesn’t mean that one loses the power to dissent. In 1861, Abraham Lincoln said in his inaugural address: “When people shall grow weary of their constitutional right, to amend their government, they shall exert their revolutionary right, to dismember and overthrow that government.”

This is the power of democracy.

Before the pandemic, in 2020, we all took part in a performance which we named Chorus 2020, which happened at Nazrul Manch, where many artistes came together to take a stand against this fascist government.

The idea of a “civil society” had started fading away in people’s minds. We need to understand, in order to voice one’s political opinion and to work for people, one doesn’t need to subscribe to a particular political party, we underestimate the power of a citizen, who silently records everything.

The sheer passion of the song drove me and my colleagues and friends to come up with the idea of a music video, under the supervision of Parambrata Chattopadhyay.

While writing the screenplay for the music video, me, Rwitobroto and Surangana’s idea was to present a result sheet in front of the audience, the result sheet of what the fascist force has done to India in the last few years.

The BJP created a perception that they were coming to power in Bengal. Their tools were false propaganda, money and the media.

Our idea in this music video was to unravel this false perspective, so people could see through. We are indebted to all those people who lent their hand in making this music video.

Yes, we had fears, we were all aware of the risks. But the word “risk” becomes irrelevant in a situation where our country is.

Like Abbie Hoffman (played by Sacha Baron Cohen) in the film The Trial of Chicago Seven says in a scene where he is put on trial for protesting the Vietnam war: “Give me a moment, will you friend?”, he tells the prosecutor. “I’ve never been put on trial for my thoughts before.” For the first time our country witnessed people being put on trial for their thoughts.

Our deepest respect to each and everyone who resisted the fascist force, starting from the ‘No Vote to BJP campaign’ to hundreds of people in our city screaming “No NRC, No CAA” in unison. Our song played a small part in a long resistance which needs to continue. Because Bengal believes in what Tagore said: “Neither the colourless vagueness of cosmopolitanism, nor the fierce self-idolatry of nation-worship, is the goal of human history.”