Gandhi for Gen Z: The Mahatma is suddenly cool again | A documentary by The Hindu

Is Gandhi still relevant to Gen Z? In the summer of 2026, a generation that never studied Mahatma Gandhi sat down at Jantar Mantar, refused to fight back, and unexpectedly rediscovered the power of non-violent resistance. What began as a protest against the NEET paper leak soon raised larger questions about dissent, democracy and the language of political action. As students organised sit-ins, fasts and peaceful demonstrations, echoes of satyagraha surfaced in places where few were consciously looking for Gandhi. From the Cockroach Janata Party’s unconventional movement to grassroots community work led by SEWA, this documentary follows the many ways Gandhian ideas continue to appear in contemporary India. Along the way, it explores the intersections and tensions between Gandhi and Ambedkar, the meaning of civil disobedience in the digital age, and the challenge of practising non-violence in an increasingly polarised society. Featuring Gopalkrishna Gandhi, Ramachandra Guha, Tushar Arun Gandhi, Saurav Das and Mirai Chatterjee, the film brings together historians, activists and organisers to examine Gandhi not as a monument of the past, but as a proposition for the present. This is not a film about what Gandhi said. It is a film about what happens when a new generation unknowingly begins asking the same questions.