Tag : storytellers

Mumbai: Scams have always caught the fascination of storytellers, filmmakers and content creators, who find a thread to present the events of the past in a compelling way. 'Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story' and 'Jamtara', have for long entertained the audience while educating them at the same time about the repercussions of these scams at large. The recently released MX Player series 'Shiksha Mandal', said to be inspired by the Vyapam scam of Madhya Pradesh, tells the story of the medical entrance exam scam. The scam, which was functional since the 1990s, came to light in 2013. Huge irregularities were found in the exams conducted by Vyapam (Vyavsayik Pariksha Mandal) -- otherwise known as Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board, in the selection of medical students and state government employees (including food inspectors, transport constables, police personnel, school teachers, dairy supply officers and forest guards) where the final results were rigged. About 40 individuals involved in the scam died from unnatural causes, though the unofficial figure is over 100 deaths as reported by the media. Madhya Pradesh's former education minister Laxmikant Sharma too was named as an accused in the same. Later, in what can be called an ironic turn of fate, Sharma died in 2021 at the age of 60 due to Covid-19. IANS recently spoke with Gautam Talwar, Chief Content Officer at MX Player about the nature of the scam, the research, documentation, findings and the current status of the scam. Sharing what was so compelling about the scam that resulted in the birth of a series, Talwar said in an interview with IANS: "The knowledge that scams like these will land up making future doctors who will then impact people's lives and the society ...