The Hindi film industry or Bollywood - as it is called, doesn't have much of a reputation in making films that focus around women, leave alone tackle women's issues.
That said, over the decades, some sensitive films have been made that tug the heart and shake your conscience. Few and far between, but these have made an impact. Strangely though, most have been made by very very sensitive male directors.
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| Image - Pixabay |
Compared to regional cinema, particularly Bengali and Malayalam film industries - that often have films made with the female gaze, Bollywood is mostly about males tackling feminist topics sensitively, albeit through the male gaze. Thankfully, that is changing and with the advent of talented lady directors like Gauri Shinde, Meghna Gulzar, Ashwini Iyer Tiwari, Konkona Sen Sharma, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Shonali Bose, the female gaze is gaining prominence slowly.
Ahead of International Women's Day, I pick five commercial Bolly films that made an imprint on my mind. These aren't necessarily on women's issues, but the representation has been honest and the focus firmly on the lady protagonist. I have deliberately avoided biopics and revenge dramas, as these are a bit one-sided, I feel.
Here is my list of must-watch Hindi films to celebrate Women's Day:
1. Bandini
A Bimal Roy classic, this film's protagonist is a flawed, highly emotional lady convict. Played superbly by the commensurate actress Nutan, the protagonist lands up in jail after having murdered her ex-lover's wife on provocation.
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| Image source - YouTube |
So blinded is she with love, she chooses to follow her ailing love of her life (who had ditched her earlier), rather than walk into the sunset with a smitten jailer. The film is about the right to making a choice. She has every reason to choose a new life, yet, she refuses to let go of the previous one. She picks up the pieces and walks the same path again. How's that for personal freedom, or the right to make mistakes?
2. Aandhi
3. Arth
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| Image Source - Wikipedia |
Both the female characters shone in the film, one with quite fortitude and strength, the other with her crazy obsession towards her man. The wife, who is shattered when her perfect marriage turns out to be a sham, picks up the pieces of her life, and restarts her own journey without the support of any man. Refusing her new lover's offer for marriage, she opts to become the guardian of a child instead. Smita's mentally unstable home-breaker character slowly unravels in her own guilt and complexes. The last scene where the errant husband comes back begging forgiveness, remains in my memory. Shabana just asks him if she had done the same would he have forgiven her? Feminism in one sentence!
4. Umraojaan
Rekha plays the titular character in this Muzaffar Ali classic to perfection. Embodying vulnerability, sensitivity, and a desperate hunger for love and recognition, Umrao is the eternal tragic heroine, A victim of a family feud that led to her being kidnapped in her youth from a respectable home, this sensitive poetess courtesan stumbles through her life. She falls for the wrong men, gives up her own liberty and choice, and hopelessly seeks approval in a harsh society that shuns such "fallen" women. Yet, she is a winner as she has the courage to own her reality, to accept her life as it is. She refuses to become bitter or malign other women, even though her own life lays in shambles.
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| Image Source - Wikipedia |
Once again the ladies man Gulzar speaks the language of not one but two women, both highly individualistic, yet completely in love.
This triangular love story, where Rekha and Anuradha Patel play rivals in love, showed us how women immerse themselves in relationships, yet how they are capable of so much more. Both women are deeply in love with the same man, but while Rekha's character is mature enough to walk away, Anuradha's character literally dies for love. Strong headed, impulsive, bold, she is an unconventional heroine indeed. The wife emerges as the stronger one though. The denouement depicts her decision to walk away from infidelity, though it breaks her heart. She is definitely no pushover or doormat.
6. Damini
At a time when macho heroes did all the heavy lifting in commercial Hindi films, Raj Kumar Santoshi made Meenakshi Sheshadri the fiery Damini, a housewife who decides to take up cudgels against her own brother-in-law for raping a help. Facing opposition from everyone, even her otherwise supportive husband, she fights to the end for her fellow woman. The film, however, finally relies on the typical trope of a male saviour - with the director bringing in a vitriolic, but good-hearted lawyer - Sunny Deol, for fighting and winning the case. Still, in the nineties, a determined heroine fighting her own family for a servant girl was unheard of. The director later also made Lajja - a film on female bonding, in the same vein.
7. English Vinglish
Gauri Shinde crafted this beautiful film that was the comeback of Bolly queen Sridevi in a new avatar. Shorn of make-up and glamour,
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| Image Source - Wikipedia |
Sri epitomized the ordinary homemaker who strives to create an identity for herself. Her quest for respect and self-esteem, for recognition by her insensitive family, was so real, every woman could identify with her. Learning English becomes a metaphor for securing self-respect, dignity and assertiveness. The last speech at her niece's wedding is pure cinematic gold. A simple journey - of an extraordinary woman, who just wants her place under the sun.
8. Queen
Kangana Ranaut played Rani with such perfection in this feisty film that showed us life didn't end with rejection in love or broken engagements, Vikas Bahl made this gem of a film that has its heart firmly in the right place. No one can be left unmoved by the journey of a young girl - ditched at the altar. who goes honeymooning on her own, makes genuine friends, and creates a place for herself in the sun. She learns so much on the way - not to judge people, to take life as it comes, to not discriminate on the basis of nationality, to listen to her heart. The film is an ode to feminism in the truest sense.
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| Image Source - Wikipedia |
Does one spur-of-the-moment slap matter so much that a solid marriage can be broken for that?
Definitely yes, says Tapsee Pannu, in this cracker of a film that is a tight slap on the face of patriarchy. A devoted wife, her character decides to opt out of her stable marriage, after her otherwise loving, albeit misogynistic, husband slaps her suddenly one day. She decides she has to draw the line there, and calls it quits, against the advice of everyone, including her lawyer. If she continues to adjust, she will have to compromise on her own dignity, she tells her husband. She can't risk hating herself for belittling her own self-respect. A marriage is a joint effort standing on mutual respect. Thappad loudly proclaimed that.
10. Darlings
Last on this list is the recent delight - Darlings. Combining tongue in cheek humour with satire and pathos, this film tackles the sordid subject of domestic violence and gaslighting. Alia Bhatt and Shefali Shah are the mother-daughter duo who have suffered at the hands of abusive partners. Driven to the brink, Alia's Badru decides to give it back, good and proper. Yet, she doesn't lose her basic humanity, even in the quest for avenging the death of her unborn child. She lets go, refusing to become a beast herself. That, in my opinion, is the best part of being a women - her ability to be humane. Also commendable is Shefali's mother character who staunchly stands with her daughter, and who is unashamed to seek love again.
So this is my list of all-time great Hindi films that gave women our due. What's yours? Do comment....
#feministhindifilms
#bollywoodwomensfilms
#hindifilmsthatcelebratewomen
#womensdayfilms
#internationalwomensday
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