From a time where national competitions were perhaps limited to sports, art, culture and literature, we seem to have come a long way. In the last six months, the Indian government has launched several national level ‘reel making’ competitions. Reels, the short videos we infiltrate our minds with on Instagram. The social media platform which boasts of two billion monthly active users across the globe has the highest number of users in India at a whopping three hundred and sixty million. Similarly, YouTube shorts, which encourages short format videos, has gained tremendous popularity in the last few years.
Instagram reels have become an easy way for content creators to increase their visibility, engagement and connect with their targeted audience. Several art and cultural professionals and enthusiasts are using this as a means to craft a narrative, promote heritage sites, share important information regarding an art work, an artisan cluster or even a cultural festival. Short stories are being narrated and an audience that perhaps would never have bothered venturing to a particular historic area or site is now feeling inspired to do so. I would have never known of the cornucopia of heritage Lucknow has to offer if it were not for Maroof Umar’s Instagram handle, ‘maroofculmen’. Be it the historic sites, the culinary heritage, the traditional artisans or even the small stores which have been running for generations. Captured in a few seconds, these reels capture the soul of Lucknow, freezing time and leaving the viewer with a sense of nostalgia.
Several fashion and textile designers are also using this as a medium to showcase the way a certain embroidery or craft is practised. From the type of fabric or weave used, to the tiny stitches that bring to life the fabric. For a craft which may be a dying form of art, the short video is a medium of preservation and inspiration. A budding artist many years later could potentially learn about a particular stitch or weave after seeing that reel. For many, it could also serve as a way of appreciating Indian craftsmanship and investing in more of it. One such handle, which recently inspired me was ‘the_sustainable_artist’. Featuring crafts and art forms from across India, the reels posted on the Instagram handle document the timely processes of creating natural dyes and pigments as well as beautiful tie and dye techniques. Had I not stumbled onto this page I would have never learnt of the number of vibrant shades that can be created by the bounties of nature. The use of each flower and seed in adding colour to not only our natural landscape but also the fabric we wear.
While reels can be a way of documentation and learning, they can also lead to over tourism at heritage sites. National parks such as Valley of Flowers in Uttarakhand had to limit visitors due to the high footfall that the historic space received. Much of this high surge could be attributed to the large number of reels promoting this site of natural heritage.
There are instances when a site is so heavily covered through the digital medium that it not only loses its sanctity but can also be detrimental to the site itself.
Giving every user the power to create a reel can also be problematic as it is leading to a number of fake stories, factually incorrect narratives. I recall watching one such video with distorted history being narrated but millions of people watching the content. Who is then responsible for the rewriting of history? Instagram? Due diligence, fact-checking should be the onus of the content creator but how does one inculcate such ethics?
There are a number of social media handles to follow and learn from for the ardent culture vulture and history buff. Handles which are documenting history as it passes and serving as public digital archives.
But, for someone who may not be inspired to read long drawn captions or use social media as a form of learning, a short snippet could be a form of inspiration to go visit a historic monument or learn about a vanishing art.