Genres, themes, memes in Hindi- Urdu cinema
This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content. |
Fog
Avijit Ghosh, January 3, 2023: The Times of India
FILM | Tere Ghar Ke Saamne (1963) SONG | Tu kahan yeh bata
What can be more romantic than Dev Anand walking the foggy streets in night-time Shimla in search of his lady love and crooning the irresistibly pining track composed by SD Burman? Bada natkhat hai samaa, writes lyricist Hasrat Jaipuri and singer Rafi playfully turns it into one.
FILM | Kohraa (1964) SONG | Jhoom jhoom dhalti raat
She sees shadows and apparitions. Scared, she shuts down doors and windows. But the ghostly voice doesn’t go away. Jhoom jhoom dhalti raat is a fabulously haunting Hemant Kumar tune fully realised in Lata’s high-pitched rendition. The fog makes its appearance three minutes into the track when the meaningful Kaifi Azmi line, mera tera jeevan kya, chhaya hua kohra, comes into play. And then it envelops the screen.
FILM | Dhund (1973). SONG | Sansar ki har shai ka
Sahir Ludhianvi’s deeply philosophical lyrics use fog as the metaphor to talk about life’s uncertainties: Ik dhund se aana hai, ik dhund mein jaana hai. Ravi’s composition captures the spirit of the lyrics; just like Mahendra Kapoor’s vibrant voice which also seems to emerge from a mist.
FILM | Bhayanak (1979) SONG | Dhuan sa utha dekho chaaron or re
Neat Usha Khanna composition lost in a forgotten low-budget horror flick where a pedigreed family feasts on human blood. Also one of Suresh Wadkar’s early songs. The dhuan that lyricist Indivar writes about is not smoke, but smog.
FILM | Ek Baar Phir (1980). SONG | Jaane yeh mujhko kya ho raha hai
Early love can be riddled with indecision. Director-lyricist Vinod Pande captures that feeling of delightful doubt in this moody track composed by Raghunath Seth and rendered distinctively by Bhupinder. What you see on film is natural fog. What you hear is the soft whisper of love arriving. The number, filmed on Pradeep Verma and Deepti Naval, was shot in London’s Hyde Park by the Thames.
FILM | Silsila (1981). SONG | Yeh kahan aa gaye hum
Most of us visually remember Silsila songs for the miles and miles of tulips. And rightly so. But at the beginning of this dulcet track composed by ShivHari, you can also see Big B walking through fog as the lines, Mainaur meri tanhai aksar yeh baatein karte hain (lyrics: Javed Akhtar), are spoken in the background.
FILM | Teri Kasam (1982) SONG | Yeh zameen gaa rahi hai
In picture-postcard surroundings, Kumar Gaurav, then fabulously fresh and confident after tasting blockbuster success with Love Story (1981), is mouthing these environment-friendly words teasing heroine Poonam Dhillon and her friends. The fog is light and bouncy, just like Anand Bakshi’s words and RD’s tune which singer Amit Kumar fills with casual carefreeness.
Marital rape
Pratibha Devasenapathy’s is a pioneering article, because of which it must be archived. However, in some instances the case has overstated. In Lipstick Under My Burkha the Konkona character, called Shirin, is a cheerful and positive person. She is never shown telling her husband that she has a headache or is otherwise unwilling. Indeed, in her conversation with her gynaecologist she attributes it to his passion. It is only after she discovers husband Aslam’s philandering and lying about his job that their sex seems an act of martyrdom on her part, but even then there is no hint of a rape.
Interestingly, a number of these films have been directed by women.
Women have always been objectified in Bollywood movies and there are no doubts about it. It is only in recent times that movies with strong subject lines and peculiar female protagonists have come into the picture. While there was a time when movies with women only dancing around were seen in Hindi cinema, there were a few movies that highlighted the sad state of women in the society. However, a lot of these movies were not accepted by the audience at the time for obvious reasons, but now they seem to be gathering the interest. Here are 10 such Bollywood movies that highlighted marital rape.
Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat
Marking Rani Mukerji’s debut this movie was loved by the critics but took a long time to reach the audience’s hearts. This revengeful tale of a man who rapes a girl just because she slapped him is not only a strong plot but also shows how powerful a woman can be. The court later decides that the rapist should marry the girl and should accept her. Consequently, the girl is trapped in an unfavourable situation where unwillingly she moves in with her own rapist. What follows is the girl's endless battle to sustain a marriage that's more of a settlement. Her struggle begins when the whole family detests her presence and endlessly plot against her to kill her or throw her out of the family.
Mehndi
Another thought provoking movie starring Rani Mukerji when a girl named Pooja played by rani marries Niranjan (Faraaz Khan). Hailing from a middle class family, she gives in all of her love to her husband and her in-laws. However, they start ill-treating her when they don’t receive the demanded dowry. It goes to an extent where they plot against killing her.
Matrubhoomi
This highly underrated movie spoke about the future world where there are no women because of continuous female infanticide and female foeticide. Its storyline bears some resemblance to real-life instances of gender imbalance and economics resulting in fraternal polyandry and bride buying in some parts of India. It depicts a future dystopia in an Indian village populated exclusively by males due to female infanticide over the years. A woman is bought by a father of 5 sons and is married to all of them because he cannot find women to marry them. Each night of the week, she is forced to sleep with one of the sons, and even the father gets his weekly night with her. This heart-wrenching movie will definitely run a chill down your spine.
Lipstick Under My Burkha
This Indian black comedy film that underwent unending number of controversies finally saw daylight after protests and debates. The film revolves around 5 women who come from different walks of life and how their lives get intertwined with each others’. These powerless women rise to the occasion and go on to prove what they are truly capable of. Konkona Sen Sharma plays the role of a hardworking woman who is in a toxic married relationship where her husband rapes her almost every night.
Parched
Another controversial movie that had to go through several obstacles before getting an official release in India, ‘Parched’ also highlighted the plight of women especially widows in remote villages if India. A movie that highlights the social evils faced by women in a patriarchal society, ‘Parched’ revolutionised the way women spoke up, fighting the age old traditions.
Daman
A time when Bollywood movies only focused on either romance or action, Raveena Tandon’s ‘Daman’ emerged out of the darkest places and entered the light with its moving plot. ‘Daman’ is a film that revolves around some of the truest and most terrible facets of a marriage which includes marital rape. Durga's (Raveena Tandon) life is made hell by her sadistic husband Sanjay Saikia (Sayaji Shinde), an educated, well-to-do tea estate owner in Assam. Sanjay tortures Durga to the extent that she finally reaches her saturation point, and is forced to take an extreme step.
Provoked
This movie not only highlighted domestic violence but also came face-to-face with other marital issues including rape. Starring Aishwarya Rai, Naveen Andrews, Miranda Richardson, Robbie Coltrane, Nandita Das and Steve McFadden, the film is based on the real-life story of Kiranjit Ahluwalia who killed her abusive husband after a decade of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse. If realistic films appeal to you, you need to watch this.
Agni Sakshi
Manisha Koirala plays a beaten wife who tries to escape her marriage and ends up with a psychopath. Her sexually abusive husband finds out and tortures her till the time she files a case against him. Truly intense!
Videsh
This Canadian film directed by Deepa Mehta, released worldwide as Heaven on Earth. It tells the story of Indian girls married to rich NRI husbands abroad, and the suffering they face. Preity Zinta as the beaten and bruised Chand, in one of her later films, was a revelation. The film shocked the audience world over with its honest portrayal of domestic violence, but was not well received in India, largely because of the unpleasant subject. Preity Zinta won the best actress award at the Chicago International Film Festival for her performance.
7 Khoon Maaf
A black comedy that didn’t do very well in the box office ‘7 Khoon Maaf’ was quite a twisted tale and was categorised as a noir film. Irrfan Khan (Wasiullah Khan, also known by his pen name Musafir), is the third husband of Susanna (Priyanka Chopra). He’s a thoughtful soft-spoken poet by the day and a sado-masochist by night who subjects his wife to marital rape. She covers the bruises with makeup. Her servants can’t bear to see the torture and advices Susanna to kill Wasiullah.
