The civic potential of Bollywood based dance flash mobs: on youth participation and digital networks

ABSTRACT

In this paper I argue that artists/activists in India use Bollywood dance and songs to choreograph flash mob performances with the aim of addressing issues of public importance because Bollywood is a common performative site that can be used to mobilize people. In order to understand how Bollywood based dance flash mobs have civic potential for activists-cum-performers, I conducted in-depth interviews with 20 flash mob choreographers in four cities of India. Based on my findings, I suggest that Bollywood based dance flash mobs are identified by the urban youth as inherently political and democratic in nature. These performances are often accompanied with the organizer-generated subgenre of flash mob videos recorded for the online audience. In archiving these performances, organizers also enable a virtual network of connections where individuals who share the same civic aspirations can come together and build solidarity around the cause.

KEYWORDS:

• Flash mobs
• Bollywood dance songs
• fan activism
• online-offline spaces
• youth participation
• digital networks
• digital afterlife
• civic engagement

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Kiran Bhatia is a doctoral scholar in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. Her research explores how children and adolescents navigate through digital networks to enact their social, political, and religious identities.

Notes

1 The event was documented and digitally archived on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iyt16efRrBo).

2 Bollywood songs and dances refer to a set of Hindi film songs and define the popular culture in India in a significant way.

3 For more details about the volunteer group visit their official website at www.letsfeedblr.com.

4 For more details about this dance production company visit their official website at www.kartikmohan.com.

5 For more details about the volunteer group visit their official website at http://robinhoodarmy.com.

6 Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code was introduced in 1864 and criminalized sexual activities ‘against the order of nature’ and so homosexuals, bisexuals, and people of queer sexual orientation were identified as criminals in India. It was only in September, 2018 that the Supreme Court of India scrapped this section giving hopes to the LGBTQAI community.

7 For reference watch the video ‘AIB feat. Kangana Ranaut- The Bollywood Diva Song’ (https://youtu.be/a9ggjCbv5ck)

8 For more information watch the video ‘Harassment through the ages’ (https://www.facebook.com/IndiaBakchod/videos/1296526953724629/).