The Elephant Whisperers’ Oscars Triumph is Everything Symbolic
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, is perhaps the most celebrated, acknowledged and the most prestigious award in the Entertainment Industry. The Oscars have one of the highest viewerships worldwide. With around 15.36 million viewers in 2022 alone, the Oscars have evolved as a strong medium for acclaim, appeal and has evolved as an ideological lens and a tool for the appreciation it has produced. It is of no denial that any form of mass media is bound by peripheries of power and an inflow and outer-flow of power dynamics. When we iterate on how films themselves are centers of power, it is crucial to understand the power flow, and whether the structure truly is centrifugal or vertical in nature. The Academy Awards are broadcasted by ABC (American Broadcasting Company), a body owned by the Walt Disney Company — a major player and dominator in the Entertainment Industry. Disney alone accounted for one-fourth of the Box Office Revenue in 2021. Figures that will only witness a steep rise as more acquisitions and convergence occurs.
While we question the nature of power, we ought to understand the nature and importance of the Oscars. It doesn’t just acclaim an actor, actress, film, director, or any entertainment professional for the work they’ve produced but the agenda flow of the Oscars pose a greater question. The question, ‘Do the Oscars have a bias?’ can be answered in a number of ways. One, yes films are subjective pieces that will produce a critical bias and a spectrum of acceptance. Second, the nature of the Academy Awards has tangibly paved the way for larger social and political discourse to be part of that bias. Halle Berry’s win in 2002, soon after 9/11, almost half a century after the Civil Rights Movement and a decade after the onset of globalisation, carved the nature of appreciating individuals of colour, and simplifying the agenda that the Oscars are an inclusive platform for talent.
Similarly, every win or recognition is tied up deeply in the agenda and the nature of the agenda that the platform wants to present. If we focus on Lupita Nyong’o and Kumail Nanjiani’s presenter speech for the 2018 Best Production Design, the speech revolves around the notion of inclusivity. “We are dreamers, we grew up dreaming of one day working in the movies. Dreams are the foundation of Hollywood, and dreams are the foundation of America”, the statement in itself, along with the pairing, imposes a broader hope and the nature that the United States and the Academy is inclusive where talent finds its way, not the regionality. Michelle Yeoh’s victory for Best Actress drew the spotlight for the first Asian to have won the award. As Asian Stars & Entertainment has gained the power and prominence worldwide, her victory was a major feat. Naatu Naatu, Deepika Padukone, and the Indian representation at the Oscars has a more potent symbolic importance that stretches beneath just a surface level understanding.
The Elephant Whisperers is an important documentary for a variety of reasons. It questions the broader narrative of linear development, that makes rural discourses seem perishable. The discourse around linear development that emphasizes on infrastructural and technological development, has been critiqued in summits and at debates worldwide as it focuses on development from the notion of profit and finance generation. Second, the Elephant Whisperers as a documentary strings together the issues of the Environment, which bring into the limelight the larger dimensions of sustainability, livelihood and governance. It acts as a bridge of dialogue of what sustainable development looks under the dimensions of intersection that India has to offer. All of which, consciously adhere to the likes of the G20 Summit, that India will host in 2023. The idea that India is walking on the same footsteps as the world is, with dialogues around climate crisis, environment and sustainable development and the importance of the praxis of SDGs, is gaining prominence.
The Elephant Whisperers is a must watch as it not only highlights the Indian culture and its narrative towards sustainability and environment tradition, while carving out a tale of human and animal peaceful coexistence. While India continues to vouch for its economic and cultural capital that continues to dominate the global landscape, 2023 Oscars was a significant milestone for the nation. Internally, as other prominent film Industries attain a pan-Indian and global landscape, the shifting gaze makes it interesting to acknowledge what India has to offer in terms of variety, in terms of diversity and with the Elephant Whisperers, in terms of sustainability and a marker of sustainable development.
Nandini Chakrabarti is a writer and poet. She believes strongly in the art and power of storytelling. Nandini has co-authored multiple poetry and short-story anthologies and is currently working on her debut novel. Nandini is an empath, bearing a passion for films, communication studies, chess, understanding the complexities of being a human and creating an equal ground for children.
Thank you for taking time to read my story/poetry. You can find me on other socials like twitter, linkedin and instagram.
