Did the Left stop taking cinema and youth culture seriously in the last 5 years?
Not saying movies make people vote. But they definitely influence the mood among youth. When CIA, Oru Mexican Aparatha, Sakhavu etc released, there was this atmosphere where being politically aware, questioning power, standing with workers/students etc actually felt cool among youngsters and campuses. These weren't even great films artistically. Most were pretty mediocre. But they still managed to create a cultural energy around progressive politics. Now I feel that entire cultural space is gone. Last 5 yearsil angane oru padam polum vannathayi orkkunnilla. Instead now I see even youth openly supporting conservative politics without any shame, even parties like Muslim League, and treating it like some cool anti-establishment identity.
I'm genuinely curious. Did the Left lose cultural influence among youth before losing electorally? Did we underestimate how much cinema and youth culture matter politically? Maybe we need more thought-provoking films that make collective politics feel alive again.