The Rise of True Crime in Television: Exploring the Genre's Popularity

Crime shows are aimed to be an eye-opener for society making them conscious about evil occurrences; but are they also encouraging crime?

Movies and television programs have an influence on Indian society and crime in India. Over many years, the issue of crime has arisen as one that has primarily affected our society at large. Crime-related incidences and happenings in society's daily boring existence often catch the headlines of news channels on television, newspapers, and other forms of social media owing to the pleasure that they bring. Everyone reads and watches crime-related news, therefore the events depicted in such news captivate individuals, especially the younger age. Although almost 99% of perpetrators and offenders are apprehended and tried by law, it does not deter the younger generation, such as school and college students, from pursuing spectacular criminal measures such as rape, abduction, robbery, and murder. Although individuals of all ages are drawn to such exciting and titillating news, it is generally the younger generation that is drawn to crime and even attempts it in the pursuit of fast money and other ambitions. Moris Media, India’s leading digital marketing agency, analyses these shows and whether they are contributing to enhanced crime in society.

Crime Depicted on Indian Television:

In India, crime-related serials such as Crime Patrol, CID, Savdhaan India and more reflect on real crime committed in society more as a conscientious approach to make people aware of the possibilities of getting exposed to such eventualities. However, the underlying message for all shows is that you cannot simply get away by committing crime. Unfortunately, such serials, as well as films made in India and overseas, depict numerous techniques of committing crime, which leads individuals in general to sometimes try out these tactics for ulterior objectives. In a world that is witnessing rapid evolution of technology, visual communication depicted through internet and television is having an assertive influence on young minds. So, although crime-related serials and movies have the noble purpose of depicting crime while deterring others from engaging in it. On the other hand, they equip individuals with innovative tools and techniques of committing crime.

Crime Representation in Indian Movies:

Crime films, according to criminologists, include all films concerning crime and its influence on society. Firstly, crime films achieve a connection with society by depicting the very societal premise on which the crime is executed. The second connection is that such films have a direct impact on society, culture, law, justice, and so on, and in fact portray the society's reality. I've previously established that what we see has a greater influence on us than what we read, and that a person can only learn from his surroundings. Similarly, a crime thriller picture has a stronger influence on the audience than a literary work.

Perhaps movies have a larger influence on manipulating the audience's psyche and making everything wrong look to be fine. People are impacted by what they see, and films have the power to alter the audience's viewpoint. When an unpleasant work is depicted in a film frequently and approved by the actors' family members, they receive mental permission to continue with the task and expect others to approve of it as well. Following that, they feel it is morally and ethically right. Such films distort people's perspectives, especially those of teenagers.

The reaction of the police and the show creators:

Over the years, real-life criminals have utilized shows like "Crime Patrol" and "Savdhaan India" as motivation for their crimes. Keeping a watch on such stuff, according to the police, is not the solution. Crime is an unavoidable subject and concern since it is a part of everyday life. Because of the emergence of online series on platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, crime looks to be the flavour of the season. "Delhi Crime," a seven-episode internet series based on the horrible 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape case and its investigation, is already generating news in India. "Sacred Games" and "Mirzapur" are two more popular crime-related web series. When questioned about the impact of such performances on young people, a high-level police authority in Gurugram felt that Mature people would not be motivated by these shows, however there have been certain incidents. During questioning, many criminals have admitted to watching crime programs. They had already planned to do the crime, but the processes and how to go about it were all taken from television programs.

However, police authorities believe that policing crime shows is pointless as they can't put a stop to some criminal programs because they delight people; they acknowledge that they can't reduce crime by doing so. Crime show producers, on the other hand, state that said that the crime show's staff does its best to be cautious when working on it. Their in-house creative teams ensure that they review the stories multiple times before finalising them. They are aware that they cannot portray acts of cruelty or rape, and there is a legal distinction that informs us which situations must be avoided.

Summarising:

People who are naturally bad seldom undergo transformation. Even if they are shown movies that promote optimism and helpful nature, their movies and series cannot alter people's core qualities. On the other hand, it is true that crime movies and web series inspire young minds to identify with and copy the principal characters. In addition, by viewing such films or television shows, impressionable young brains are introduced to innovative concepts and storylines for committing various types of crime. As a result, they are virtually like crime manuals. That is why, after seeing crime-related movies or television shows, so many individuals strive to emulate the crimes shown, expecting to get away with it or earn fast money.

Filmmakers should be held accountable for sending a positive message to society so that their films or television shows do not foster crime. In this regard, it is critical that audiences understand the repercussions of crimes, even if they are committed by prominent characters in crime-related movies and series whom they may like or adore. It is critical that everyone understands that anybody who violates the law would undoubtedly face legal consequences under Indian law.