Review of Gandhi (1982) by J W — 16 Apr 2010

Gandhi.

The movie Gandhi is an Oscar award winning film based on the life of Mahatma Gandhi. The film starts with Gandhi being killed in 1948. After showing his funeral, the movie goes back to begin telling his story. The story starts being told when Gandhi is in his mid twenties. He is on a train in South Africa and gets thrown off because Indians were not allowed to be in first class. After this occurs, he starts a protesting for the rights of Indians in South Africa. He eventually gets the government to agree to recognize the rights of Indians.

After going back to India, he begins fighting to make India independent from Britain. He is able to get a large number of supporters for his crusade. While all of his protests were non-violent, violence was committed against the protesters. On several occasions, Gandhi is sent to jail as well. The protests are eventually successful and India finally becomes independent from Britain.

Problems between Muslims and Hindus in India begin to escalate soon after the Britain victory. The problems are related to religion and Gandhi steps in to try to help resolve the situation. Once again, he uses non-violence as a form of protest, this time going on a hunger strike. He decided that he would not eat until the fighting stopped, which it eventually does. However, to resolve the issues, it is decided that India would be divided into two parts; one for Muslims and one for Hindus. Gandhi does not like this and again works to find a way to end the fighting. His fighting to bring peace to the area made many people angry and one ends up shooting and killing Gandhi. The film ends just as it started, at Gandhi's funeral.

This movie relates to World Religions because it shows the tensions between Muslims and Hindus. When fighting for the independence of India from Britain's control, Hindus and Muslims worked together. After independence was won, things fell apart between the two groups with religion being at the center of the conflict. Gandhi believed in and taught tolerance of all religions. He saw that regardless of what religion we practice, we are all human beings and we should all find a way to work together. In the movie, he says," I am a Muslim and a Hindu and a Christian and a Jew and so are all of you." This statement signifies the strength of how he felt; we are all one regardless of how or what we believe. Religion should be about love, not hate. It should bring us together not separate us.