Express

At any point in history humans have discovered ways to exhibit their emotions, opinions and ideas. The Mughals mastered their ghazals, the English obsessed over their paintings and the French filled theatres for Operas. We still see these art forms thriving around the world. The only difference being the content they convey.

People don’t paint and idolize the aristocracy anymore, they confront its concentrated wealth. The reasons for expressing have been undergoing changes continually since the beginning of time and humans have discovered innumerable ways to accommodate these reasons.

In today’s world, expression is more important than ever. The Australian Bushfires starting a Climate emergency to the pandemic, Social uprisings around the world or perhaps just the rollercoaster of emotions staying at home has left us with, all of them have been subjects of various mediums of art.

Today we’d like to bring to you one such medium of expression- Documentaries.

There are no heroes or villains, only storytellers. There is no mainstream music, only voices of the storytellers.

Documentaries have the ability to delve deeper into a narrative and answer some important questions. The reason this is necessary more than ever, is because they lay down various topics in their most vulnerable forms. They try to give us the experience of witnessing great stories as if we’re part of it too. They allow us to be a part of something bigger. They are platforms that create dialogue and build bridges of empathy.

Documentaries have always been a form of expression. They capture the raw emotion in people’s thoughts and actions. When we question actions, we question the people behind them. When we question the people, we question their thoughts. When we question their thoughts, that is when we’ve truly empathized with someone. This is when we see the true expression of a human.

Let’s recognize that these are most probably the most creative methods of learning and go on to etch prevailing facts in their most sensitive state onto people’s minds. The pace at which the world is changing, documentaries have become mediums of dissent and compassion. They’re real stories, some of which you might end up relating to. You watch these to remind yourself once in a while that you are part of a collective society that is ever changing.

It doesn’t matter if you know what happened, if you don’t understand why it happened. Documentaries help you understand why through the expression of everyone in the what.

By Anjali Bodempudi

Anjali Bodempudi is a media and communications student. She hopes to combine her interest in the fields of media and humanities one day.