Does Ram Mandir Matter to Fitness Freaks in Ayodhya This Election?

What do the youth of Ayodhya hope for these elections? Is it still Temple vs Mosque, or are there newer concerns?

Barkha with the gym members in Ayodhya. (Photo: The Quint)

Twenty-five years after the Babri Masjid demolition shook up the political landscape, how do Ayodhya’s young fitness freaks see themselves and their futures?

There is an entire generation of voters who wasn't even born (or just about) in 1992 and have no living memory of the Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid dispute or the demolition. With elections underway, is it still Temple vs Mosque, or has that fight been supplanted by newer concerns? What are their expectations from this election?

Barkha Dutt talks to the frequenters of Paradise Gym, one of only two gyms in the city, to see what gets their blood pumping this elections, aside from lifting weights. Apart from the aspiration of an "international body" (Hanuman calendar on the wall shares space with many pictures of beefed-up white men), these young men were mostly Modi fans and in one case, a Mayawati supporter.

Producer: Anubhav Mishra
Video Editor: Mohd Ibrahim