Actor and teacher Mallika Prasad has been attending the protests in Bengaluru against the alleged NEET-UG paper leak, where students have been demanding accountability and justice. While the protests in the city have been relatively peaceful, Mallika believes the turnout needs to be much larger. Speaking about why she has been showing up, the need for broader accountability and why this moment must be documented, she says the protests are about more than just one examination or one generation of students. Excerpts: You have said that this protest feels historic. Could you explain?I’m not even sure how to explain it, but I haven’t been able to switch off.
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It feels like one of those moments where, if you just treat it like any other day, you’re complicit in forgetting.You’ve been attending the protests in Bengaluru regularly?Yes. I’ve attended three days now, and I’m going back tomorrow.Bengaluru has been more peaceful than cities like Delhi or Mumbai. How does it feel on the ground there?It is peaceful, yes, but not enough people are gathering right now. Not many people are coming out to join the protest.Does that disappoint you?Yes. Because for us, it is about us. The kids are sleeping on the street, not being fed, not being given water, and getting beaten up. I don’t even have kids, but they’re out there for a much larger cause. The least we can do is have a conscience and show up. In Bengaluru, did you sense anger or frustration among those who did come?Not really. There’s such a pleasant, wonderful presence, especially among the students. Political parties are also coming in, sloganeering for their own agendas, but I don’t think that is automatically a bad thing. People join based on their own pain points. It’s like a dam has opened — years of things bubbling up. People have a lot to say about a government that has criminally ignored the public.Do you think people are coming out mainly for the students, or are they also using this as a reason to speak about other frustrations?There is a very clear understanding of why people are there. There is so much love for this young generation that has come up. Just look at them. They are so young and so clear-eyed about what they want. There is an unbridled love that everyone is showering on them. So, yes, everybody turning up is definitely doing so for the students. But there are also people who feel this government has done much to create unrest and has played divisive politics for so long.So the protest is about broader change too?Yes. They want transformation. They want accountability on many things. This moment is spearheading it. Someone had a poster saying, ‘This is the beginning of the end.’ I believe that. These kids are showing us how to stand up and stick together.Why do you think Bengaluru isn’t seeing bigger numbers?I think there are many reasons for it. Bengaluru has always been a little complacent. I’m not complaining about it particularly, but we do have it easy in many ways, so let’s put that right up front. When you’re comfortable, you’re unlikely to get out on the streets and protest. One of the protesters was saying that perhaps people should come and protest in Bengaluru because everything is conducive here. We have a Congress government, the climate is so good and people are so nice. But I think there is also an inherent complacency. I love this city, but it is also true that, people feel, ‘Until something is at my throat, I’m not going to step out’.Another factor is that a large part of Bengaluru’s population works in the IT sector. They tend to think, ‘Oh, this isn’t about us.’ There are also so many gated communities where expats, IT professionals and well-established people live and earn well. Perhaps they feel insulated because they can buy a seat somewhere else for their child. So I suppose there is also an upper-middle-class section that doesn’t feel the need to step out because of that.But let me tell you, the crowd I saw on the days I went was absolutely wonderfully surprising. They were all young people — people I had never seen before.I’ve been attending protests since I was in college. Usually, when you go to a protest, you see the same old faces. The last generation will still be there, continuing to turn up. We are like a bad penny — we just keep turning up. But this crowd was completely new to me. They were so well-behaved, and their placards were so mean, sharp and pointed. They were smiling, they were listening, and they were incredibly articulate. A cop once came up to a girl who was holding a flag around her shoulders. It was dragging on the floor, so he told her, ‘Hey, that’s not good.’ She immediately said, ‘I’m so sorry,’ and picked it up. Then she went right back to writing something really poisonous about the government on a piece of cardboard. That, to me, was really heartwarming. You don’t necessarily have to be rabid and frothing at the mouth. You can be sharp in your critique and dissent, and still do what these young people are doing — hold a peaceful, non-violent protest. At least, they are trying to. They are being boxed in and provoked every minute.You have been documenting the protest through the pictures on your social media. Why does that matter to you?Because we should historicise this moment. The placards, drawings and graffiti are phenomenal. We should have a museum of it. Yesterday, they even made clay models of cops lying on the floor in a line. It’s powerful art and memory in real time.What should the government do immediately to restore faith among students and in the education system?Listen to them. This isn’t new. The paper has leaked again during the protests as well. So, suddenly pretending that now they will take action and be strict about these things is all rubbish. They just have to do what the kids are asking for. That’s it. Don’t try to give us your jumlas. Don’t try to hoodwink us. Don’t try to shuffle things around. They are asking for something very legitimate, and they are asking for it without compromise. They are saying it is non-negotiable, and they are right. It is too late to now come and say, ‘Oh, let’s negotiate.’ We have not done anything about it. The bullies have just become stronger and stronger and stronger. The media too has to wake up and say something. So much of it has been bought out. When students are being beaten and voices are being squashed, you don’t get to stay neutral. As a public figure, do you think it’s a responsibility to speak up?Yes. It’s our job to speak to power, to stand up against injustice and to speak for those who don’t have voices. But people also need to stop obsessing over stars who won’t speak. Celebrityhood runs on an economy. Sometimes that economy costs you good work and real courage. Don’t feed it.You spoke at the protest and interacted with students and parents. Were you there as a celebrity?No. I’m there as a teacher, as a citizen. My students are out there — and even if they weren’t, there are so many kids out there. A little boy was holding a placard. The values parents give their children in moments like this — those kids will remember it for life.What do you hope the students take away from this?That standing by the right thing works. We have to prove it to them. They can’t sacrifice this much and come away defeated. It sets a terrible precedent.
