The Sabarmati Report movie review: Vikrant Massey boards the propaganda train [Video]

In an interview that went viral ahead of The Sabarmati Report, actor Vikrant Massey, briefly turning political analyst, reflected on the state of the nation. “People say that Hindus are in danger, that Muslims are in danger. No one is in danger; everything is going fine. This is the best country to live in the world,” he declared in a podcast. The nervous naivety of Hindi film actors ahead of a controversial release is always enlightening to witness. It’s a balancing act no gymnast or slackliner can fathom.

Balance and fairness is a major concern in The Sabarmati Report. When a character, an elite, English-speaking news anchor played by Riddhi Dogra, argues that journalism is not just about reporting facts, but also “balance and context,” she is shushed by the film’s vernacular hero for conveying those words in English. Years later, the same hero, now a celebrated newsreader himself, albeit in Hindi, mentions a democratic and dharmnirpeksh (secular) Bharat. Even as he speaks, a …