From Spider-Man to the Hulk: Pop culture finds place at Jantar Mantar protest

New Delhi, Jul 23 (PTI) As more young protesters gathered at the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest site at Jantar Mantar on Thursday, slogans and speeches were joined by an unusual sight — Spiderman and the Hulk.

A student from Agra attended the protest dressed as Marvel comics superhero, Spider-Man, drawing parallels between the superhero’s journey and the struggles of students.

“I am a huge Spider-Man fan, his main message was ‘with great power comes great responsibility’. Just like Peter Parker faced challenges while trying to do the right thing, many students here are fighting their own battles. That’s why I am standing with them,” he said.

Moving through the crowd, raising chants of ‘Vande Mataram’ from time to time and posing for selfies

with fellow protesters, Spider-Man quickly became a crowd favourite.

Not far away, another protester, who did not wish to be identified, wore the green mask of Marvel character, the Hulk, but had a different mission. Carrying garbage bags and wielding a broom, the student volunteered to keep the protest site clean.

“This is my way of supporting the cause. Keeping the place clean is also a form of service,” he said while collecting garbage and carrying it to a designated disposal point.

Inspired by popular television series Game of Thrones, another student, Vineet, held up a placard reading, ‘Stark Students Stand United.’ “The Starks always stood for what they believed was right, the Stark family’s commitment to honour and justice is what has brought us together. That’s exactly what all of us are trying to do here,” he said.

With large numbers of young protesters joining each day, the gathering spilled beyond Jantar Mantar onto the adjoining Tolstoy Road.

The protest site now has temporary medical shelters, food and water camps and volunteers helping students prepare placards by providing A4 size papers, note pads and markers, and even writing slogans for them.

Blending pop culture with protest, the young demonstrators at Jantar Mantar continue to add distinctive symbolism to the agitation.

The CJP protest, which began on June 20, is demanding accountability over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations, reforms in the education system, resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and compensation for families of students who allegedly committed suicide due to the paper leak. PTI SSM MDO MDO