Lipstick Under My Burqa: My Thoughts

Photo credit

(Spoiler alert: Read on if you don't mind spoilers)

Lipstick under my burqa - a powerful film that has forced me out of my blogging sabbatical. Because I have to talk about it. Not just because the movie deals with an unusual subject but because I’m appalled that we’d never get to watch it thanks to some uptight, out-of-times people who did not want it released. Another attempt to silence the voice of women, hush the reality, conceal from the world that women can have feelings - sexual, no less!!! 

The movie explores the lives of 4 diverse women - across ages, professions and social strata. Yet, you wouldn’t miss how the plight of each woman is the same - trapped in her situation and confined by definitions that society binds women into. 

Rehana is a college girl on the verge of adulthood but restrained by birth in her conservative family. She is expected to adhere to what people believe a girl like her should be - burqa clad, obedient and almost invisible, drawing no attention to herself. She steals and lies to keep up with the joneses in college but is back to her miserable life once she gets home. 

Leela has a career as a beautician and runs a parlour but has to fight for her right to be with her boyfriend. Her mother, a widow, wants her daughter to get married since that is the only way a woman can have security and respect. And so she is stuck at the crossroad of whether to be with her boyfriend or do what her mother expects her to do. 

Shireen, a mother of three, has no rights. She is fettered in her marriage to a man who uses her every night for his pleasure and that’s her only function in his life. She has no say in using protection and has silently suffered 3 abortions. Sex is also the weapon he uses to dominate her and punish her when she insists she wants to continue in a job she hid about from him. His ultimate warning to the sexually abused and beaten Shireen is - Don’t try to be a husband. 

Usha, the 55 yr old widow, who has lived her life but is still not free to be herself. She reads erotica and also finds the courage to learn swimming in her small town. She finds a new self through these activities but does it in secret, because a woman is never free, at any age, to live the life she wants to. 

And then there’s Rosy, the bold character from Usha’s erotic novel who has fantasies and yearns for a man. Her story is narrated by Ratna Pathak Shah and becomes the final voice of the narrator at the end. 

I am guessing that Leela who has pre-marital sex to Usha, who reads erotica - were the main objections why the censor board did not want to release this film. Teenage rebellion is an age old theme. But portraying women as sexual beings is against Bharatiya sanskriti. It is too much for men to reveal the truth about themselves to the world - a man can use a woman for his pleasure every night because it is his right and it is right. But it’s not becoming of a woman to even think about it. She has to be shamed and thrown out of the house - like Usha is when her erotic novels are discovered by her family. 

Photo credit

The stories of these women converge at the end when all four of them find themselves in Rehana’s house - co-sufferers who find solace in each others’ company. The younger ladies help Usha gather her stuff that’s been thrown on the street and get her indoors. Sitting in each others’ presence, they realise that their predicament is the same - whether it’s Rehana who’s yet to begin her life or Usha, who has already lived hers. Their deed of rebellion is to smoke a cigarette, probably meant to be a metaphor for their freedom - but within the confines of the room. These women can wear lipstick but only under their burqa, hidden from the world. Their real desires and true selves is something the world doesn't want to deal with. 

This is not a Bollywood blockbuster. None of these women rebel and fight societal prejudices that force them to lead a double life. Or drive them to seek refuge in a little room with each other. The narrator’s voice ends the story with Rosy walking out of the door of her house to live her life, pursue her dreams. This gives us hope that these women too may find their way out into the world and be able to live the lives each one wants to. 

What hit me the hardest about the film is how powerless and impotent these women are in their circumstances. Being born in a home with freedom and education is an urban privilege. How can Rehana fight the parents she is stuck with? The liberty to pursue one’s career and choose one’s life partner isn’t a right a woman in our society is born with. What should Leela do? Who should she choose? Once a woman is married, her own parents have nothing to do with her. And I feel the worst for Shireen, who despite being more able then her husband suffers ignominy in her marriage every day. Is it easy to walk out in her situation? And while I see so many women in their 40’s and 50’s finding a new lease of life and start afresh after their kids have moved out, that’s not something their rural counterparts can look forward to. How is Usha to live her own life and save herself the embarrassment she’s made to go through? 

And each one represents an entire tribe of such women manacled to their lot. I really don’t know what to say to end the post. Anything I say wont make any difference to the plight of real women living such lives I’m so saddened to watch on screen. I’m thankful to Alankrita who had wrote and made this film. And fought to get it released so that the world could see the truth through this wonderful piece of work. Let's just hope that there will be a time when women can live and be who they want to be without being judged or punished for it. 

Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon - Movie review

Not worth a watch! 

I'd like to confess that this review is based on watching an hour of the film. I also want to confess that I went to watch the film just for Kapil and for the sheer hard work that's taken him to the big screen. However, from whatever I had heard of the plot of the movie, I knew that it wasn't going to be very great. And I was proven right five minutes into the film. 

Kis Kis Ko Pyaar Karoon is the story of a man who gets married to 3 girls for the flimsiest of reasons that defy all logic. And the rest of the film is a Saajan Chale Sasuraal style dodging of people he doesn't want to run into but does. Plus, the palatial, well furnished homes in Mumbai for 3 wives is a tad too much even for the suspension in disbelief that Bollywood usually requires. 

We walked out in an hour for 2 reasons. One, the plot was pretty clear and the comedy wasn't as great as I had expected. Two, and more importantly, my spouse thought this was my way of torturing him for something wrong he did to me.  So I decided to leave in the better interest of my marriage ;) 

To be honest, my expectations of comedy from the film were quite high. It's a dud in that dept. Kapil, somehow, doesn't seem to fit the big screen. The image of Bittu Sharma is too overwhelming in my mind to see him as anyone else. His dialogue delivery, gauche dancing and his mannerisms simply remind you of the guy who appears in the comfort of your homes every weekend. 

All the lead women are new, unknown, model like people who are there just to look pretty. The skin show and forced glamour just makes it unreal since no one sitting at home (as confessed by the characters themselves) would have the well toned bodies they have. The songs (2 in an hour) are out of place and make no sense.

All in all, it's a dud for me. I expected a much more powerful script, performance, comedy and power from an actor of Kapil's calibre. I don't doubt his ability to act or his screen presence but with this film, the script itself lets him down right from the start. Wishing him better luck next time! 

What's the big deal about Karvachauth?

Photo credit

Come Karvachauth and men bashing starts. i don’t know how much of it is justified and i wont get into it. i take this opportunity to reminisce about the day through different stages of my life.

My earliest memories of Karvachauth are of my mom. That was the only day she would be all decked up even though she was at home. She would drape one of her best sarees - which weren’t many considering she had 3 kids to raise on one income. She’d put on her jewelry set, lots of bangles and vermillion in her parted hair. She said this is how women got dressed up on this day since it is a sign of being married. This information was our only window to the world of Karvachauth since we had no other reference point in the 80’s in Bangalore. The tradition hadn’t swept the whole country like it has now and was celebrated by only the Punjabi women. She would do the rituals for the day by herself in the evening. And by night, my brother and i would be making frequent trips to the streets around our house to see if chandamama was out. And no, the concept wasn’t Bollywoodised yet and my dad wasn't supposed to feed her the first bite. My mom would just walk out with her pooja ki thali and sieve to finish the ritual. She would first drink water because that was a more immediate need. And the day ended without much hoopla.

Photo credit

When we shifted to Delhi in the mid 90’s, i got to see the glitsy and glamorous version of the day. With some commercialization, some Bollywood and some Delhi’s high-class culture, Karvachauth was a whole new concept here. Mehendi on both hands was a must and the mehendiwali made a killing at the exorbitant rates. Women turned out in their most expensive finery for the communal pooja where women from the whole building gathered to do it instead of doing it alone in their homes. My mom had stopped fasting by then due to health issues. So, we would just watch all this from our home and feel glad that we didn’t have to be a part of this pageant!

i looked forward to the time i could play the Bollywood-style wife, draped in traditional best and do the look-at-your-husband-through-the-sieve-ritual! But the ultra rational person that my darling husband is, he said i could do all the decking up i wanted to make myself happy. But the wife being hungry for the resulting long life of the husband was pure ‘buhawkee’ to him! In hindsight, i am also relieved at some level. Films like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham have totally made the whole thing so filmy and melodramatic! i'm sure i'd imagine one of the scenes from films i was doing my own pooja and it just wouldn't seem real at all!

Photo credit

Sometime around the same time, i became aware of the feminists’ angle to the story. Why should women fast? Why should only women fast? Aren’t we equal in a relationship? Poor men! They also offered to fast. Yet, the bashing of men begins every single here. Even if women fast voluntarily.

Here’s what i think about it. We all have just become too hyperactive thanks to multiple avenues we have of venting out our sense of rectitude. To me, Karvachauth is a beautiful festival. In today’s times, when women hardly have the time or the inclination to dress up traditionally, i think it is great opportunity to do it even if it is just to keep up with the spirit of the day. How else will we keep the traditional in us alive? Also, add one more day to birthdays and anniversaries when married people can take time out to strengthen their bond with each other. If fasting is the bone of contention, lets do away with it. i know it’s like hacking at the most important part of the festival but don’t we change so many other things to suit our convenience? Fasting can be optional since women have equally demanding careers. But with equality being the flavour of the times, there can be a different dimension to the festival. Earlier, women did everything like a dutiful wife. Now, men can help cook, take care of the kids and generally take time out for the wifey! Why create controversy over something that can be turned around to for the better! Don’t you agree?

Flimsy films - 2 States

i had read the book 2 States way back when it was released. i thought it was by far the best book that Chetan Bhagat had come up with. His previous books were too juvenile for my taste. And as much as i can remember, the book was more interesting than the film. The depiction of North - South cultural divide was more fun to read in the book. Since it was the writer’s own experiences, his writing was so much better.

i did not expect much from the film and true enough it did turn out to be mediocre. The scenes which are supposed to reinforce cultural differences fell flat. i kept waiting for a dramatic turning point which would define the crux of the film and make that connect with the audience. But the only thing that came was the end of the movie and a sigh of relief from deep within me. The film lacks any one thing that might serve as a redeeming feature - romance, performances, cultural differences, comedy. None! The songs seem more like an intrusion in a film where i am waiting for such clutter to clear and a real conflict to emerge.

In terms of acting, Alia Bhatt came as surprise to me. Guess i was too influenced by all the twitter jokes on her dense intelligence and did not expect her to be any good. Plus, to be honest, i am a little prejudiced since she is a Director’s daughter and hence her take off through a Karan Johar film. But she does pull off the role well even though she doesn’t look remotely South Indian - but then not all south indians have stereotypical looks. She dressed well through the film, though a little overdressed for her in-the-office scenes in the second half. Surprisingly, i found Arjun Kapoor more disappointing. He seems to have one static expression on his face which lasts almost the entire film. i expect a lot more acting talent from the nephew of Anil Kapoor. He was so much better in Ishqzaade.

The only really great scenes are with Amrita Singh and Ronit Roy in it. Seasoned actors completely in the skin of their characters. You really feel the tension between the couple in those scenes, like they really have a history between them. Amrita is so credible when she tries hard to act the snooty punjabi mother-in-law, the only role in her life that gives her an an upper hand as opposed to being a suppressed wife all her life.

Since at no point does my heart go out to the characters and their predicament, nope, not even when they separate and she refuses to talk to him, i wouldn’t say I came out of the theater feeling exhilarated about love winning the battle after all. You can watch it once, when it comes on TV. But you did not miss much if you did not watch even this one.

You can read my last Filmsy film post here

Queen - some thoughts

i went to watch Queen because of all the positive buzz about it. Honestly, i wouldn’t plan to catch up on a movie Kangana Ranaut in it. (Memories of Tanu weds Manu come flooding back). Even though it took me a couple of weeks to finally plan it, the movie was still on in theaters - rare for a woman oriented film to last that long. So that was another clue for me that it is doing well. Even on a weekday afternoon, there were more people than i expected, even though no closer to a full house. And i am glad that i did not miss this one! A breath of fresh air after a long time. 

The simplicity of the film won my heart hands down. i am not expert enough to really comment on the technical aspects like cinematography and screenplay. But the way the story is grounded at all times appeals to me. From the Rani’s look to the way she behaves all through is very realistic and in keeping with the tone of the story.

The change in Rani through her middle class, typical Delhi house in Rajouri to the Paris and Amsterdam is very subtle. When the scene shifts to Europe, i expected the quintessential Bollywood makeover to happen. But the change here is so gradual, just like it would be in real life. Rani is as reluctant to drink wine or live with boys in the same room as a girl from her background would be. Her clothes don’t turn designer to match the foreign locale. In fact, a black bra under a pink kurta seemed a classic stroke in her character.

The story is motivating like English Vinglish was. The moral was more pronounced here. Shit happens. But it all depends on how we perceive it. We can always turn it around into positive. i wouldn’t say that this applies only to women. This can be a learning for anyone.  And think the movie gives such a fantastic turn to a catastrophe in the life of a middle class Delhiite.

i cannot end my post without talking about Kangana Ranaut. She may not be rated as one of the top actors of the times. But this movie definitely proves that she can act. She carries the film solely on her able shoulders with no glamour or no surprise turn of events to help her. You can feel her anguish and happiness.  You cry and laugh with her. She has managed to make Queen a hit by the sheer dint of her talent!

Go watch Queen if you still haven't.

Forever young!

Is it some kind of a ‘suspension in disbelief’ that works in Bollywood? Or is it some kind of a trick played on the audience that we accept what we see on screen?

Well, the reason for this outburst started while watching the movie Cocktail starring Saif Ali Khan. His character is a flirt of the first order, sleeps around with babes and has a mon in tow who wants to find a beautiful Indian bride for eligible bachelor puttarji. i mean this man is actually 42 yrs old in real life with 2 grown up children! This is 2011. Rewind a whole decade and you’ll find Saif playing pretty much the same character in Dil Chahta Hai - the flirtatious, confused casanova nt knowing where to look for love! (Worth looking up Kal Ho Na Ho in 2003 and Hum Tum in 2004 in very similar contexts)

On the same lines, i still can’t believe that it’s possible to accept a 44 yr old actor as a first year engineering student!! Look at them in real life and they definitely look just out of school kids. But we just didn’t accept Aamir in 3 idiots, we also went to make the movie one of the highest grosser of the year. (Even in DCH, Aamir portrayed a college student while he was actually 36 then!)

Since most male actors in Bollywood easily have a career span of more than 2 decades, most of them end up playing college-going, mushy, romantic heroes for at least the entire first decade of their careers. It has never mattered that the age of the leading ladies keeps getting half their actual age! (Since a female actor is never going to be playing the same kind of roles as the men at 40! They come pretty young and die away that fast)

i know these guys work really hard at their looks. And Aamir definitely has succeeded a lot more than his other Khan counterparts. But what beats me is how magically people keep playing characters half their age and we as audience never find it out of place. It’s all so magically woven in to the masala that Bollywood is, that we just flow along! i really don't know what to make of this. i'd appreciate if you all can share what do you feel about all this?