Cinema is the mirror of society and its norms, structures, and values. While it can contest the existing power structures, prejudices, and regressive norms, it can also entrench and re-entrench them simultaneously. The ways in which the Hindi cinema has portrayed caste and members of the Dalit community is a particular case in point.
For a long time, Hindi cinema was caught in a trope of wretched Dalits being emancipated by the benevolent upper castes. While other parallel waves of cinema made some serious efforts, the wait for a mainstream Dalit Hero continues.
In this regard, scholar Harish Wankhede aptly claims that Dalit representation in mainstream Hindi cinema largely follows the Gandhian logic where deprived socio-economic conditions of Dalits are reformed by kind-hearted, charity-driven, and philanthropic upper-caste men. This type of representation can be seen in several films such as Ganga Jamuna (1961), Sujata (1959), Damul (1985), Swades (2004), and Article 15, among others. Hindi cinema primarily creates upper-caste male characters as change-makers and frames Dalits as passive recipients.