Lara Dutta on 'Ranneeti' being called propaganda: 'Patriotism is touted as jingoism'

Lara Dutta on ‘Ranneeti’ being called propaganda: ‘Patriotism is touted as jingoism’

Former Miss Universe, and actor Lara Dutta plays a power broker in JioCinema’s ‘Ranneeti: Balakot and Beyond’. The thrilling web show gives insights into what went behind closed doors between the Pulwama and Balakot airstrike. Given the subject and timing around the general elections, many have already called the project ‘propaganda’, a tag that the actor feels is quite unfair.

Speaking exclusively to India Today, Lara Dutta discussed how content around patriotism is often questioned, and so is the politics of an artist. Sharing that the show is not ‘fictionalising’ but is rather inspired and based on the history of the country, she said, “As for what people say, they always construe or misconstrue as per their sensibilities and convenience. Often, patriotism is also touted as jingoism.”

The actor then went on to draw a reference from Hollywood films and how fingers are never raised on them. She said, “We are massive content consumers, and when we watch films from the West, we never call them propaganda. But in our country, be it as filmmakers or actors, when you do certain projects, you are flouted for promoting certain propaganda. I would only suggest that first watch it. Everyone is entitled to their opinions, but they shouldn’t pre-empt it. Just like what our latest show talks about, you are then sowing a seed of thought in others’ minds, and they will start seeing everything through that lens.”

Echoing her thoughts, director Santosh Singh added that ‘Ranneeti’ is close to reality and very subtle. He added that they have even taken a slight dig at the jingoistic movies that try to paint a specific picture. “Our show is not hyper and all of us were clear about taking that route. It’s a very thin line, hard to maintain, but makes all the difference. Nowhere in our show have we raised any slogans to invoke patriotism. That can also be done without shouting, and this is what makes us different.”

Further, talking about ‘Ranneeti’, Lara Dutta said that given her father and sister are Air Force pilots, it felt closer home to her, and she resonated with the plot. The actor added that even when she knew a lot about the incidents, she was intrigued by the research and details by the director. Lara added that usually, a character like she’s playing in the show would have been essayed by a man. “Credit to the makers for coming to me with this,” Dutta added.

Also starring Jimmy Shergil, Ashish Vidyarthi, Prasanna Venkatesan, Ashutosh Rana, and Elnaaz Norouzi, Ranneeti: Balakot and Beyond is streaming on JioCinema.

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