The Hour of Lynching is a 2019 documentary film directed and produced by Shirley Abraham and Amit Madheshiya. A Muslim dairy farmer, Rakbar, is brutally murdered by a Hindu mob who thought Rakbar was taking the cow to be slaughtered for meat.
Rakbar’s wife, Asmeena must practice mourning in purdah for a period of 4 months. You see the anger in her eyes. She’s all alone, and yet she strives for justice. She goes as far as to say the government can either kill her children too or give her justice.
As the film progresses, we see the breakdown of Rakbar’s family. Rakbar and Asmeena’s daughter, Sahila has to sacrifice her education as she takes on a larger role in the family in the absence of her father. On the other side of the documentary, we see the delusion of the Hindu nationalists. They constantly try to justify, validate, and encourage such killings. The camera is used intensely, close enough so you can see and feel the pain, far enough that it doesn’t feel intrusive. You have a seat at the table, listening to these vulnerable and idealistic conversations.
More often than not, we tend to look at the larger picture when it comes to mob-lynching by Hindu nationalists. We look merely at the face of it, and The Hour of Lynching scales it down and shows us the larger impact. The families that have broken down, and the people who have forever been cast out from their families. The film starts with the line, “In 2014, Narendra Modi was elected Prime Minister of India.” That was the largest catalyst in the increase of the hate crimes committed by “Cow Vigilantes” or as we know them, गोरक्षक (Gorakshaks).
The politician, Gyandev Ahuja, adds a petrifying element to the film. The people of the country cannot rely on their own leaders, as he refers to the Muslims of this country as something to be rid of, discarded as if they were garbage. He feeds the cows reared by Rakbar, with immense pride having “saved the cow”, protecting it from the “wrath” of Rakbar. We hear from the Muslims as a community too. They are enraged at the way they are treated but scared to speak up because if they do, they will be labelled terrorists. Theirs is a sad predicament, where they must suffer in silence, if they say anything, their suffering only increases.
The most terrifying part of this documentary film though, is the Hindu youth camp. Children are conditioned to carry on and propagate these very values. There is determination in their eyes, as they practice waving their lathis around. It feels ominous. It feels Orwellian. It feels dangerous. The film touches you when you see Sahila, all alone, with the cows in the field. She’s deserted, literally and figuratively. The landscape of her life has changed forever, and that seclusion comes to life with the heart-shattering background score given by Lora Karpman and Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum.
This 19-minute reality check given to us by Abraham and Madheshiya makes you worry for the future of the nation, where religion can make or break you. Where religion coincides with the law. The film concludes with the line, “On May 23, 2019, Narendra Modi was re-elected as Prime Minister.”