Conflicts of all sorts are manufactured. Whether it is direct confrontation between two nations, or economic one-upmanship between large corporations or the covert assault of the ambiguous virus on the global population, everything is man-made. An average person has little or no control over these, it is sheer luck whether one survives or falls victim to any of these conflicts. Having said that, those who are lucky to live outside the shadow of these altercations, are possibly living in the most plentiful era of the past hundred years or so. Why then is society so obsessed with conflict?
Looks like, handful of people want humanity to be constantly wrapped in some sort of conflict, it is the perfect business model. Any activity of wealth creation whether it is agriculture or manufacturing or anything else needs sustained effort. Conflict is the only business that is truly self-sustainable. It takes only a small initial nudge and rest of the cycle pretty much works on auto-pilot. It needs no capital investment and little executive intervention.
People are not obsessed; they simply get sucked into conflict for the lack of a balancing magnetic force. Art was an aspect of human civilization which provided this balancing force and which till recently remained largely unaffected by these synthetic agents of war, but art seems to be engulfed by conflict these days.
Sir Charles Chaplin, arguably one of the greatest artist of all time made connection with millions of humans worldwide, for the simple reason that his humor was humane. It was unlike the crass acts we witness these days, where the joke and the resulting laughter is invariably at the expense of someone else’s ridicule and resulting distress. Chaplin laughed at himself so that his audience can laugh, and while the people laughed at his buffoonery, deep down they wept and found catharsis knowing the fact that they were not alone, Chaplin embodied us all.
Art and commerce cannot and should not co-exist. There is an urgent need for the two to decouple. The success or failure of an art form these days, is measured in terms of the money it has made instead of the hearts it has won. There lies the problem. When an artist is coerced to follow a business model, he doesn’t remain an artist anymore. An artist’s expression has to be independent of economics. One has to have the canvas and the liberty to paint the way one wishes to. The audience in turn, certainly has every right to celebrate or reject the work depending on the reverberations it generates. Wealth can be a byproduct and rightly so, but unlike business, it cannot be the primary aim.
The reason we revere an artist is because he is blessed with the capacity to give expression to the feelings of millions who cannot. To be an artist is a matter of great honor and one must be respectful and mindful of that. People put artists on a higher pedestal because they are like radio transmitters. They transmit ideas on a frequency which reaches far and wide and acknowledged by people operating on a similar wavelength. It is criminal on the artist part to use the platform to knowingly transmit toxic content. If an artist cannot stay independent of economic influence, if he lacks the integrity to stand apart from those indulging in the business of conflict, then he might as well stand down, because he no longer deserves the place on the pedestal. Moreover, it is the masses responsibility to bring him down.
Contrary to popular perception, this is an excellent time to be an artist, if and only if one wishes to be an artist and not a closet businessman and/or an agent of conflict. We are lucky to be living in an age where conflicts with nature are much lower as compared to a few decades back. Scientific progress has ensured that we live a rather stable, comfortable life, free of uncertainties. An artist can thrive and contribute in making our society a happier, richer place. Unlike the past when an artist was at the mercy of the benevolent king, today one can make a living by presenting the art to the eager audience all over the globe, which is willing to gobble up good content.
It is sad then that there needs to be a reminder that art is much more than a means for political messaging or generating social upheaval. Art at its core is celebration of life and life is much more than politics and conflict. The society being constantly broken into pieces by artificial “isms” needs to find a way to be together and art is the tool to achieve that. Today more than before, we need a Chaplin who can make us laugh and cry and thereby make us feel one. Today more than before, we need to be connoisseurs, who can differentiate the true artists from conmen. Together we need to be on a healthier, happier frequency. Conflicts unfortunately are here to stay.
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