This is a very difficult time for the art world. Lack of structured ways of dealing with sexual harassment has meant a public trial on social media that is unfortunately double edged for obvious reasons. That combined with agendas that range from exculpation to moral shaming has led to a huge shakeout. In my previous column, I had addressed this huge watershed in the history of classical music and dance. Where we go from here is indeed up to us.
It is interesting to look at prevailing attitudes in holding musicians to the highest moral rectitude and then scoffing at them. Various justifications are bandied about — they are in the public eye and responsible for teaching many and so forth. But I wonder — isn't society responsible for itself? Are we not all culpable for gender insensitivity, power play in sexual predatory behaviour and the like by endorsing mainstream entertainment that endorses all of those things? With our children watching?
What is this new moral India? Which shames women who speak up, deifies musicians, and then as randomly vilifies them? Where were these morals when the films of the 1980s and 1990s glorified (in fact still glorify) women who value their ‘honour’ over all else, have to play meek subservient acchi ladki roles obeying (yes you heard that right!) aggressive men and their various shenanigans?
Equally ridiculous and abominable is the support that ‘rasikas’ are giving some of the aggressors. “He is such a good teacher” and “he always made sure I ate properly before he ate” type eulogies have been added to the narrative. No predator is uniformly badly behaved. Nor does teaching well or cooking well in any way exonerate bad behaviour. Are the people writing these things even adult enough to understand how pointless such defence seems? The worst cut of all is “he was nice to me.” Does that imply that a victim is lying? Or are we trivialising what could be a pattern of behaviour.
Mere interpreters
This elevation of musicians as models of good behaviour and mini deities seems to be equally misplaced. I am not justifying wrongdoing. Merely placing on record that we need to look at musicians also as human, and capable of the same vicissitudes and vagaries of psychology as everyone else. They are not the art form. They are but interpreters of a portion of it.
In much of the medieval world artistes were accorded a unique place. They were not considered gentry. Or the upper crust. However they were given respect for their art, separate quarters or neighbourhoods to stay in and certain rights and privileges.
They were appreciated for their creativity and output but it ended there. They were not held as paragons of virtue. In fact art historians will tell us the opposite.
I wonder if the gentrification and upper class appropriation of the performing arts has created a new class that has access, power and privilege and is using all of these to groom and prey on the unsuspecting. Obviously this does not pertain to the innocent — which is still the majority. It certainly explains the entitlement, pompousness and lack of remorse from some of the aggressors whose transgressions now seem to be apparent.
But let's be reasonable. Let us direct complaints to those who can take action or can advise us on next steps. Social media trials will not help resolve anything. Let us also refrain from shaming or deifying anyone in this context. Or worse, trivialise someone else’s trauma.
The writer is a well-known pianist and music educator based in Chennai