“Means of Connecting the Contemporary Indo-Fijian Women Towards the Imaginary Homeland.”

Rohini Ronita Lata “Means of Connecting the Contemporary Indo-Fijian Women Towards the Imaginary Homeland.”

Rohini Ronita Lata

A supervised research project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Literature

School of Language Arts and Media, Faculty of Arts and Law The University of the South Pacific

September, 2009

Acknowledgement

I am indebted to a number of individuals with out whom this research would have been unattainable. Firstly, my supervisor, Dr. Mohit Prasad for his continuous patience and endurance with my drafts and his facilitation and insights which helped shape this thesis. Secondly, I would like to affectionately thank the Indo-Fijian women of the Samabula area (primary research) who assisted in the research by filling in the surveys and answering the questionnaires. Thirdly, my sincere gratitude to Ms. Shalini Prasad for her assistance in supplying me with the films which I required for this research and providing an overview of the Hindi satellite television’s daily-life drama series and Mr. Richard Ram for assisting in the typing of the script. My heart felt gratitude to Ms. Artika Narayan for her assistance in providing printouts of the research paper for the editing phase, facilitating with the page setup and constructing the graphical representations for the primary research and Ms. Maelin Bhagwan for her efforts in proofreading the research paper before the final submission. My deepest gratitude is reserved for my family and God without whom I would not have been able to ‘decorate in ink.’ Abstract

The ‘Old Indo-Fijian Diaspora,’ of the indentured labourers who came to Fiji between 1879 and 1920 has been an important area of scholarship and research. According to Dr. Brij Lal, some 60,965 indentured labourers came to Fiji during the indenture period, of these, 45,439 where from northern India, embarking at Calcutta and the rest came from southern India after 1903 when recruitment had begun there (Lal, 1983:2). After serving their indenture term many indentured labourers (such as those interviewed in Ahmed Ali’s book; Girmit: Indian Indenture experience in Fiji) revealed that they were trapped in a far-away land and many had no choice but to make Fiji their home (Ali, 2004). Brij Lal strengthens this point by stating that Indians did not leave their homeland with the view to completely severing their links with it but many of them probably hoped to go back after acquiring wealth in the colonies (Lal, 1983:4). The indentured labourers comprised of Indians of different classes, geographical locations, castes, languages, occupations and an unequal gender balance. The pain and remorse felt by these labourers were worth recording, studying, researching and internalizing as today this has provided many intellectuals, academics and searching souls with information to broaden the studies in this area and provide exposure on the Old Indo-Fijian Diaspora. This paper therefore looks into the movement of Indians from India to Fiji during the indenture period and particularly allegorizes the role played by the female girmitiyas during the time of indenture where Gyarti Spivak’s notion of the “triad- use, exchange and surplus” would be employed to explore and discuss the traditional role of the women girmitiyas (Spivak, 1996). Indo-Fijian women today are thousands of miles away from India yet they are still influenced by the homeland and various connections are evident almost a 130 years since the beginning of the indenture system. These ‘connections’ to the homeland do not imply that Indo-Fijian women are connected to the whole of India but refers to them identifying themselves with specific aspects. These ‘specific’ aspects in this paper are limited to what these women perceive through the various media available in Fiji and for the purpose of this research, namely: The Bollywood cinema, Independent cinema, daily-life drama series via Hindi satellite television and the Diaspora poetics

i (literary works of Indo-Fijian writers on the indenture experiences). In this light the role of Bollywood films and the daily-life drama series of the Hindi satellite television (which are adopted from epics / religious texts) are of great interest due to copious stereotypical characters of the binary of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ and thematic representations of ‘moral’ and ‘immoral’ (dharmik / adharmik) values depicted through these media. A closer look would also be taken at the female portrayals in the above mentioned media and weighed against feminist claims of portrayals of ‘round’ female characters on screen in contrast to the Independent Cinema which moves away from the fictive and indulges in those subjects of culture and human nature which are not easily accepted by the subjects in concern. Moreover, this paper looks at (through a primary research) how closely the contemporary Indo-Fijian women are connected to the cultural, social and religious aspects of India via the various media mentioned. Additionally, Vijay Mishra’s notion of the emergence of a ‘diasporic imaginary’ growing out of a sense of being marginalized or by being rejected outright by nation states would be looked at in terms of the views and experiences of the Indo-Fijian women from the primary research, illustrating that this diasporic imaginary is also created and promoted mostly through the ‘romanticized images’ of the Bollywood cinema and Hindi satellite television. The Diaspora poetics is also seen as a means of connecting the contemporary Indo-Fijian women (elite group) to the homeland, opposing Vijay Mishra’s claim that the literary works of Fiji Indians reissue versions of ‘the conscious falsification of reality’ of the Girmit ideology. Instead a positive direction would be ventured towards with Salman Rushdie’s idea of creating fictions of the imaginary homeland (Indias of the mind) and using one’s own memory to create memory of the homeland (an imaginative truth). This paper discusses the role of the above mentioned media in creating ‘Indias of the mind’ amongst the contemporary urban dwelling Indo-Fijian women. Additionally, in order to get first hand information a survey was carried out and questionnaires were distributed randomly to 100 Indo-Fijian women around the Samabula area, a suburb of Suva, the capital of Fiji. The women used for the primary research varied in age ranging from 16 to over 60 years with different educational, geographical (that is, where in Fiji they are originally from), caste and sub- racial backgrounds. ii Table of Contents

Abstract...... i

1.0 Introduction ...... 1

2.0 The ideologies, experiences and role of the Indo-Fijian female girmitiyas………6

3.0 Hinduism in: characters, plot and themes of the Bollywood Cinema and Hindi Satellite Television …………………………………………………………………12

4.0 Female portrayal in Bollywood: A Feminist approach...... 17

5.0 Female portrayals of the Hindi Satellite Television’s Daily-Life Drama Serials………………………………………………...... 23

6.0 Romanticized images and the diasporic desire: a paradox...... 29

7.0 Rejection of the Independent (Art) Cinema...... 32

8.0 Diaspora Poetics – imaginary connection to the homeland...... 38

9.0 Conclusion...... 43

10.0 Bibliography...... 45

11.0 Filmography...... 46

12.0 (Appendix A) Sample Questionnaire and Survey….……………………………48

12.1 (Appendix B) Graphical Representations of the Survey and Questionnaires…54 1.0 Introduction

A dandelion is a large bright yellow flower on a hallow stalk with a globular head of seeds and downy tufts. Once dried up the tufts travel the breeze leaving the centre to find new homes where they germinate. The dandelion here is metaphoric of the ‘diaspora.’ The Indian diaspora is complex and complicated as Vijay Mishra explains;

The Indian diaspora has grown out of two quite distinct movements in the history of Capital. The first movement of classic capitalism produced the movement of indentured labourers to the colonies (South Africa, Fiji, Trinidad, Guyana and so on) for the production of sugar, rubber and tin for the growing European markets. This is the Old Indian diaspora of the plantation labour. The second movement of the late capital is largely a post 1960’s phenomenon distinguished by the movement of economic migrants but also refugees into the metropolitan centers of former empires as the New World and Australia (Mishra, 2002:235-236).

The Old Indian diaspora thus will be defined as the movement of Indians from India to Fiji from 1879-1916, to work on the plantations on a five year term which the labourers called ‘girmit.’ The indentured labourers to Fiji mostly comprised of north Indians and only after 1903 south Indians were recruited (Lal, 1983:2). The recruits were of different classes, castes, geographical locations, occupations, languages and an unequal gender balance. Brij Lal, in his book Girmit; The origins of Fiji Indians states that:

In the case of Fiji, there were altogether 13,696 females and 31,458 males transported during the period of indenture emigration overall, therefore, there were 43.5 females to every 100 males (Lal, 1983: 99). 1 In Fiji, cultural / social amalgamation led to the fragmentation of the so called ‘authentic / pure’ Indian culture. This is supported by Brij Lal where he states that:

The new life fostered a sense of companionship and togetherness that cut across barriers of religion, caste and place of origin. (Lal: 1983)

The traditional women suffered breakdown in values and culture as they were shared amongst the men in order to compensate for the gender imbalance.

The women folk of the indenture and contemporary times are of great interest as this paper focuses on the traditional roles of these women during the indenture period and explores the various means of connections/ influences of the contemporary (urban) Indo- Fijian women towards the homeland.

Gayatri Spivak uses Marx’s notion of the “use, exchange and surplus- triad” and allegorizes the relationship of women within this particular triad. She suggests that women in the traditional social situation produce more than she is getting in terms of her subsistence, and therefore is a continual source of production of surpluses, for the man who owns her, or by the man for the capitalist who owns his labor-power (Spivak, 1996). This triad would be used to discuss the traditional role of the women ‘girmitiyas’ during the indenture period.

In the discourse of this paper, the term ‘Indo-Fijian women’ refers to a large group of contemporary heterogeneous women (used for the primary research) living in the Samabula area (A suburb in Suva, the capital of Fiji). The group includes different sub- races and religions, such as; Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Muslims, North Indians, South Indians, Gujaratis and others. In this paper, references will be made to Hindu scriptures / literature only, this is so, as referring to all the different religious texts of India would be too vast to control and analyze. Another reason for referring only to the above mentioned 2 is because most Bollywood films and Hindi satellite television’s daily-life drama serials, which are part of the central discussion of this paper, mimic the plots, themes and stereotypical characters from this source. The questionnaires and survey carried out in the area of study focus on the different means (namely: The Bollywood cinema, Hindi satellite television, Independent (Art) cinema and the Diaspora poetics) which connect the Indo-Fijian women in this urban settlement towards the cultural, social and religious aspects of India and to some extent assist these Indo-Fijian women to create an imaginary India.

The values and roles of the Indo-Fijian women have changed drastically from indenture times, nonetheless these women still feel influenced and connected towards India which is believed to be in an imaginary sense (diasporic imaginary). This paper directs the notion that it is mostly through the ‘falsified romanticized images’ of the Bollywood cinema and the Hindi satellite television’s daily-life drama serials that Indo-Fijian women are connected to the imaginary India or in Rushdie’s words: ‘Indias of the mind- imaginative truth’ (Rushdie, 1992:10).

Subramani in his book, Altering Imagination favours the view ‘that female stereotypes, whether in Bombay or Hollywood movies, aren’t a conscious strategy to keep women down but a practical necessity to help an audience distinguish the basic images (mother, wife, vamp, innocent girl) on the screen.’ Furthermore, he states that ‘feminist critics (not naming any specifically) feel that the basic images of women portrayed simply do not conform to their role in society. Feminists argue that within a sexist society and a male dominated cinema, women are represented as what she represents for men.’ (Subramani, 1995:136). This paper therefore perceives the female portrayals on the screen in line with the views of such feminist critics and believes that the female characters of the Bollywood cinema and the Hindi satellite television serials are cast keeping in mind their male opposites (the primary gender) as these female characters are usually there to facilitate or support the role of the male actor. Stereotypical female characters of the Bollywood cinema and Hindi satellite television greatly influence the contemporary 3 Indo-Fijian women and connect them to the different aspects of India.

The Bollywood cinema and the daily-life drama serials of the satellite television are composites of various genres such as: epical, romance, family dramas, action thrillers, comedy and so on, where some films or series are a mixture of two or more of the above mentioned. These media create a sense of imagination through the ‘false romanticized images’ of the ideal homeland where these women imitate / copy the traditional ceremonies / rituals associated with births, deaths and marriages. Despite lacking in authenticity, the false romanticized images of the Bollywood cinema and the daily –life drama series of the Hindi satellite television help reconstitute fragments of the ideal India in the lives / memories of the contemporary Indo-Fijian women. The Independent cinema in contrast remains fictive but attempts more realistic or social realism, directed narratives and drama. This however is rejected by the Indo-Fijian women as it portrays the darker side / realities of the homeland and shatters the flowery / romanticized images painted via Bollywood films and the Hindi satellite television. The Independent cinema in this essay would be discussed via Deepa Metha’s film triology; Fire (1996), 1947- Earth (1998) and Water (2005).

A sense of diasporic imaginary emerges in Indo-Fijian women today (as Vijay Mishra Suggests) growing out of a sense of being marginalized or being rejected outright by nation states, as many Indo-Fijians feel during / after the coup crisis in Fiji. Although there were no physical returns to India during these crises, many Indo-Fijians developed a sense of longing in an imaginary sense towards the homeland. (Mishra, 1999b:421-447) This ‘imaginary sense’ today is to some extent initiated and promoted through the Bollywood cinema, Hindi satellite television and the Diaspora poetics. The primary research reveals that the Indo-Fijian women felt that they were mostly influenced by the plot, themes, characters, songs and dances and the Indian culture portrayed in the Bollywood films. Vijay Mishra claims that the Diaspora poetics (literary works of writers of the diaspora) reissue versions of ‘the conscious falsification of reality’ of the Girmit ideology. He believes that these writers press only on the pains / sufferings of the host 4 land in contrast to celebrating the homeland (Mishra, 1977). This paper believes otherwise, that is, although the Diaspora poetics are internalisations of the writer/s they are to be taken seriously and celebrated. Therefore, Salman Rushdie’s notion of promoting the creation of fictions of the imaginary homeland (Indias of the mind) seems to be the way to go, as Rushdie believes that using one’s own memory to create memory of the homeland (an imaginative truth) is to be celebrated, respected and allowed liberty to initiate and spread (Rushdie,1992).

In order to raise evidence on the issues and ideas discussed in this paper, a primary research was necessary. Hundred Indo-Fijian women (the subjects) from and around the Samabula area (a suburb in Suva, the capital of Fiji) were used for the survey and questionnaires. The subjects comprised of the various composites of Indo-Fijian women discussed earlier. The age of the subjects varied from 16 to over 60 years with different educational and occupational backgrounds. The samples of the primary research were chosen randomly in order to show / gather realistic and fair views which are discussed under subheadings. Furthermore, during the discussion some acronyms would be employed, such as ‘DLDS’ would occasionally substitute its long form, which is ‘daily- life drama series, and the Bollywood practice of giving acronyms as ‘KANK’(for their long titles) ‘Kabhi Alvida Na Kahna’ would be used for films and Hindi satellite television serials with long titles.

The Bollywood cinema and the Hindi satellite television in unison with the diaspora poetics have given rise to the notions of ‘false romanticized images’ and ‘conscious falsification of reality.’ Although this paper disagrees with the claims of the latter notion, it believes that both of these notions are strong means of connecting the contemporary urban Indo-Fijian women to the imaginary India. These notions are seen as the major pull factors towards the imaginary homeland (diasporic imaginary) and the idea of rejection (physical / imagined) from the host land (sense of being marginalized) is perceived as a push factor towards the diasporic imaginary (imaginary homeland).

5 2.0 The ideologies, experiences and role of the Indo-Fijian female girmitiyas

The accounts of the girmitiyas in Ahmed Ali’s book Girmit: The Indenture Experience in Fiji point a finger towards a greater “push” factor from India rather than a “pull” factor from Fiji. Mayer states the same:

The push from India must have been in most cases greater than any pull from Fiji. Poverty, disputes with the police are said to be the main incentives which overcome the distaste for emigration. (Mayer, 1963:4)

The women who accompanied the male girmitiyas were not necessarily accompanying their spouses. Many left their spouses and families behind as Brij Lal states, ‘that an interesting feature about the Indian female migration to Fiji is that 63.9 % of the adult women came on their own as single migrants’ (Lal, 1983:103-104). During the indenture period the labourers went through great struggles and traditional practices, cultures, and beliefs fragmented. The caste system for instance began to break at the recruitment depot and on the ship as people intermingled with each other. The caste system in India was at that time an important part of ancient Hindu tradition. Not only did it dictate one’s occupation but dietary habits and interaction with members of other castes as well. The female girmitiyas like the men were of different caste / sub-caste backgrounds. Brij Lal states that ‘ of all the females who came to Fiji, 41% were Brahmans, 9.0% Kshattriyas, 3.0% Banias, 0.3% Kayasths, 31.4% middlind castes, 29% low castes, 2.8% Tribals and 16.8% Muslims. Altogether about 48% were of higher or middling castes’ (Lal, 1983:104). During the indenture period, women of different castes were in close contact with other women (of other castes) and also had sexual relationship with men of different castes and even the white overseers. Some women were forced to such acts while others were willing to accept their fates and avoid severe beatings (Ali, 2004).

6 Despite the fragmentation of the caste system, the issue of gender inferiority / superiority was prevalent where Indian women were treated as the inferior gender and to some extent still are today. This binary of inferiority / superiority can be traced back to ancient India and the religious texts / myths and legends of Hinduism. Not surprisingly, the issue of caste and gender inferiority / superiority have been central issues in numerous Bollywood films. Women in ancient India were important due to practices such as mother worship as Alladi Uma states:

The theory of mother worship is handed down to us by the pre-Aryan civilization, we are aware that we indeed have a long history of mother worship. Even in the Vedas, where male deities are prominent, we have Aditi, the mother of Gods... (Uma, 1989:5).

The idea of mother worship has been featured in many Bollywood films such as Karan Arjun (1995), Fiza (2000), Jai Santoshi Maa (1975) and the like where mothers are worshiped and any disrepute against them is avenged and dignity is restored at any cost.

However, both in traditional and contemporary times, a mother, although worshipped was / is led by a husband / father. The Hindu epic, The Ramayana, shares stories of mighty kings with many queens but never a valiant queen with many kings. The trend was for male deities, kings, husbands or sons to lead and females to follow, facilitate or suffer. This practice descended from the epics to the ancient and then traditional Indian society where women were regarded as child bearing and rearing objects. It was only through a man’s role that a woman’s role was defined.

Gyatri Spivak who identifies herself as a Marxist / feminist / deconstructist, deconstructs the binary of man and woman and when defining the term “woman”, rests it on the word “man” and argues that this is not a reactionary position but by deconstructing the 7 opposition between man and woman, it finally shows that it is a binary that displaces itself (Spivak, 1996:54). The traditional Indian society sees a woman’s existence through a man’s.

Rituals in Hindu weddings tend to re-instate this gender inferiority / superiority binary where the, groom during the traditional weddings leads the pheras (the encircling of the holy mandap) four times while the bride follows, the remaining three pheras is led by the bride where the groom follows. The woman follows in one extra phera than the man, where this extra phera of the mandap re-emphasizes on the traditional / submissive role of the women who are subjected to their husbands. Although the portrayal of Hindu weddings on the screen do not emphasize on detailed rituals (due to time limits) such as the number of pheras and its significance, it emphasizes on other issues such as dowry (which has died out in Fiji), placing emphasis on gender inferiority / superiority where the groom’s side of the family occasionally demands for cash and items of value (dowry) and the bride’s side submits, in fear that if they do not, then their daughters might remain unmarried.

Gyatri Spivak uses Marx’s notion of the triad: use-value, exchange- value and surplus value, explaining that the notion of the use-value is that which pertains to a thing as it is directly consumed by an agent. Its exchange value (after the emergence of the money form) does not relate to its direct fulfillment of specific need, it is rather assessed in terms of what it can be exchanged for in either labour power or money. In this process of abstracting through exchange, by making the worker work longer than necessary for subsistence wages or by means of labour saving machinery, the buyer of the labourer’s work gets more (in exchange) than the worker needs for his subsistence while he makes the thing. This “more-worth” is surplus-value. Spivak allegorizes the relationship of woman within this particular triad-use, exchange and surplus by suggesting that women in the traditional societal situation produces more than she is getting in terms of her subsistence and therefore is the continual source of the production of surpluses for the man who owns her or by the man for the Capitalist who owns his labour. (Spivak, 1996) 8 The role of the female girmitiyas (traditional) can also be explained within this triad, where they produced more than what they got in terms of their subsistence hence were a continual source of production of surpluses for their husbands, partners, sardaars and the European overseers (men). Women during Girmit produced labour on the fields and at home. Those who could not accompany the labourers to the fields were responsible for minding all the children. The notion of use-value of the female girmitiyas involved both physical and sexual ‘labour.’ She produced more than her subsistence as after a hard day’s work on the fields, at home, there were expectations from her to cook and sexually satisfy men (they could be more than two) including the sardaars and overseers. Ahmed Ali describes through Naraini’s (a female girmitiya) case as to how women were abused if they retaliated to submit themselves to men of authority such as the overseers and sardaars. Naraini, a young 18 year old was forced to leave India since she was pregnant without marriage. Hence to conceal her shame she came to Fiji. She found herself a man but he deprived her of food and beat her up. A victim of domestic violence, she ended giving birth to a premature baby who died. Two days after the child’s death she was ordered back to work. Unable to work she chose to rest when overseer Harold Bloomfield, his assistant, A.E. Allman and sirdar, Muniram found her in her work place where she was severely beaten by the European overseer. Later the British court of justice released Bloomfield unpunished. (Ali, 2000:93-96)

In a similar situation three years later, in 1913, another female girmitiya, Kunti, escaped from attempted violation, suggesting that the predicament of females continued unchanged. Ahmed Ali states that deliberate infliction of injuries on girmitiyas and sexual molestation of females, by sirdars and overseers, were prevalent throughout Girmit from 1879 to 1919. (Ali, 2000:96)

The work that the female girmitiyas did on the fields could be measured monetarily but domestic duties and sexual affairs / abuses / molestations could not be measured or

9 compensated for, hence these were the girmitiya women’s “more worth” or ‘surplus- value’. Not only did the women of girmit produce more than their subsistence but suffered more than their endurance. Brij Lal in Girmitiyas: The Origins of the Fiji Indians states that, ‘indentured women, especially those in Fiji, unwittingly played a very large part in the movement to abolish the indenture system as the news of the molestation and abuse of Indian women on the plantations outraged the Indian public leading to the abolition of the indenture system (Lal,1983:97).

This section therefore concludes that the sufferings of the indentured women were genuine basing it on the earlier discussions on the findings of Ahmed Ali and Brij Lal, together with Brij Lal’s quote of a folk song sung by women from Fiji, suggesting how women were tricked into indenture and how they suffered.

Oh recruiter, your heart is deceitful, Your speech is full of lies! Tender may be your voice, articulate and seemingly logical, but it is all used to defame and destroy the good names of people

* I hoe all day and can not sleep at night, today my whole body aches, damnation to you, arkatis

* Oh! Registration officers, may death befall you: You have deprived me of my marriage bed (Lal, 1983: 110). 10 Moreover, Vijay Mishra in the epilogue to the book Rama’s Banishment compares the Indo-Fijian indenture experience to Rama’s banishment:

The structure of the Tulsidasa Ramayana tends to enforce a particular design, a way of looking at the realities of indentured life in Fiji. It also, of course, tended to help the process of ‘mystification’ which went along with the Fiji Indians’ concept of India (Mishra, 1979:140).

Mishra further quotes Subramani in the introduction of Rama’s Banishment showing the hardships and distress of the girmitiyas:

There is no alternative life: a hundred years of history on these Islands has resulted in wilderness and distress. It is an impasse which leaves a huge gap which the Fiji Indian wishes to fill up. He gestures towards things Indian- the film industry in Bombay the cult of Sai Baba and so on (Mishra, 1979:4).

Therefore, the next sub-topic looks at how Hinduism plays a fundamental role via the Bollywood cinema and the Hindi, satellite television in the lives of the contemporary urban Indo-Fijian women in attempting to fill the cultural, social and religious void of the homeland.

11 3.0 Hinduism in: characters, plot and themes of the Bollywood

Cinema and Hindi Satellite Television.

Hinduism is the main religion and belief system among many others in India, and of much interest in this context. The primary research carried out revealed that Hinduism is also the main religion and belief system among the Indo-Fijian women as 66% of these women identified themselves as Hindus, 24% as Christians, 6% as Muslims and the remaining 4% as Others. Chidananda Das Gupta wrote “The epics and myths of the country would seem to present the most widely acceptable base for the artistic development of the Indian cinema,” (quoted in Chakravarty; 1993: 125) Mishra expands on this point by citing Foucault, “my interest is more with powerful texts that are founders of discursivity” (Foucault 1980:154). Foucault here, according to Mishra had in mind a theory of decisive or foundational texts that get endlessly rewritten, though not necessarily endorsed. They are critiqued, their values challenged, their structures destabilized even parodied, but they remain foundational nevertheless. Foucault refers to Marx and Freud as the key modern founders of western discursivity. However, in the Indian literary tradition (borne out of its religious and epic texts) that position is singularly held by these texts, whose rules of discursivity invade principles that govern the formation of the Bombay film. (Mishra, 2002:5).

This shows that all which are featured in the Bollywood Cinema and the DLDS of the Hindi satellite television are based on the skeletal of the Hindu epics that is, dharma (the ultimate Hindu law), particularly the Mahabharata and the Ramayana epics which derive from the Vedas. However, for this paper, a closer look would be taken at the Ramayana only, in order to closely frame the research avoiding verbosity and ambiguity. Both the Bollywood Cinema and the Hindi satellite television’s DLDS (although of different genus) mimic one or more aspects of the religious Hindu epics. The fundamental epilogical binary of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ (dharma / adharma) is present in many (if not all)

12 Bollywood films and Hindi satellite television’s DLDS. The epilogical binary of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ is fundamental of the dharmik (religious) principles which are portrayed through the characters; the hero, heroine, anti hero / heroine and facilitating / supporting roles. These dharmik principles are also evident through the incidents / plot of the films / serials which eventually lead to the theme that is, how to live according to the dharmik principles. Both the Bollywood cinema and Hindi satellite television employ (in Foucault’s terms) ‘founders of discursivity’ which refers to the foundation of the plot which in this case would refer to the Hindu epics. The Ramayana for instance is a composite of a colourful and eventful Hindu epic which reflects goodness, the breeding of evil and finally ends on a note of destruction of evil. It emphasizes the basic dharmik principle of punishing the evil and rewarding the good. It focuses on petty issues such as lies and lust leading to war and destruction. A classic example of this is Lord Indra committing the sin of having an immoral relationship with Ahilya by disguising himself as her husband, Sage Gautama. Sage Gautama, upon realization of what had transpired curses Lord Indra and in rage curses Ahilya to a stone figure of a woman which could only be set free from captivity by Lord Rama’s touch. This is a sheer case of punishing the evil / evil act. Despite the hierarchy of power / authority (that is Indra being a god and Gautama a sage) Gautama confidently cures Indra as the dharmik order which is absolute has been destabilized and evil must be punished (Mishra, 2002:5). This is in line with Vijay Mishra’s view of the renouncer whose tapas (severe austerities) can challenge the power of the Gods themselves (Mishra; 2002: 6). Gautama also curses his wife, and since she was unconscious of the sin committed, her curse has a leeway and she is set free upon Lord Rama’s touch years later. Despite her unconsciousness to the sin / evil committed she is punished because dharmikally evil of any sort must be punished.

Similarly, King Dhasrata is punished as a result of the curse of Sharvan Kumar’s blind parents when Dhasrata had accidentally shot Sharvan Kumar during a hunting spree. Consequently, Dhasrata dies in grief of his own son (when Rama is exiled) as the blind parents had. Hence dharmik principles are absolute and the idea of punishing wrongful deeds was highly evident in the epics of the golden ages and has continued to be used as 13 the discursivity foundation of the plots, characters and themes of the Bollywood films and the Hindi satellite television. The data from the primary research discloses that a large percentage of Indo-Fijian women are Hindus and together with the dharmik principles they believe in the theory of karma where blessings and punishments are received in accordance to good and bad deeds. However, this does not imply that Indo- Fijian women of other religious backgrounds do not support the dharmik principles of Hinduism or do not watch films / serials which employ Hinduism as the discursive foundation. Therefore, Indo-Fijian women (especially Hindus) are influenced by Bollywood films and Hindi satellite television since both mimic dharmik principles which these women are able to relate to and embrace in order to fill in the cultural, social and religious void in their lives / situations in Fiji.

The Bollywood action films has seen many heroes in the likes of Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Ajay Devgan, Suniel Shetty, Akshay Kumar and others, fight the villains (evil) either to protect their family repute, mother, sister, wife, lover or for a just course. The fundamental image of Lord Rama (or any other epical hero) valiantly fighting and slaying the demon king Ravana (or any other epical villain) is mimicked as the heroes beat up the villains and at the end the villains are either killed or put behind bars. In most of these cases the hero’s action is not seen as a crime but instead he is praised for eradicating evil. Relatively, Indo-Fijians during times of crisis (such as coups) in Fiji, as Vijay Mishra suggests ‘feel marginalized and try to cling strongly to the homeland (Mishra, 1996b: 421-447) or things which are Indian. In this case the Indo-Fijian women feel void and cling on to the Bollywood Cinema and the Hindi satellite television for identity and see themselves as imaginary heroes and the natives (renouncers) as villains.

Sooraj Barjatya’s Hum Saath Saath Hai (2004) (We Stand united) which is a family drama mimics the Ramayana and relays the story of a very happy and united family until Manta’s (Reema Lago who plays the mother) friends who are stereotypes of the evil Manthara (ill advisor of queen Kaykayee in the Ramayana) feed jealousy against her step son Vivek (Monish Behl) that he might cheat his two brothers of their rights / shares. 14 The mother is trapped in maya (emotion) and tries to protect her two biological sons and indirectly Vivek is forced to leave the family house for the happiness of his mother. This incident is directly mimicked from Rama’s banishment initiating as a result of Kaikayee’s insecurity for Bharata her son. Nonetheless epilogical goodness and the dharmik order prevail as Prem (Salman Khan) like Bharata refuses to take his elder brother’s position. Upon this, the mother realizes her mistake and brings Vivek and his wife back home (Rama’s return from exile is mimicked). Once again there is normalcy in the family as goodness conquers evil and the dharmik order is restored thus a happy ending for the audience in the homeland and the Diaspora.

The Hindi satellite television’s DLDS also like the Bollywood cinema uses the same / similar ‘discursive foundation’ of the Hindu epics in its plot, themes and characterization. However the plot of the DLDS is winding as the ‘merri-go-round’ of committing evil is followed by the restoration of goodness. This vicious cycle of evil is never ending until the producers decide to end the production of the serial. This cycle allows the continuity of the serial and captivates the viewers’ curiosity. Unlike Bollywood films which are approximately two and a half to three hours in duration (could be more); the Hindi satellite television’s DLDS are productions or serials over a ‘season.’ The number of positive and negative character types in this genre is bigger in number in comparison to Bollywood films as the casting is bigger and the plot is lingering. Hence the vicious cycle of good and evil also lingers. In the Hindi satellite television serial, Saat Phere: Saloni ka Safar (Marriage: Saloni’s journey) (just to focus on one out of the many similar ones) the female vamp, Kaveri is endlessly plotting against her sister-in-law, Saloni. Once her malice is revealed and goodness prevails, Kaveri quietly re-treats conspiring yet another plot against Saloni and her loved ones, all these in the hunt for power, greed or sheer evil. Kaveri here is portrayed as a kniving and evil daughter-in-law in contrast to Saloni the ideal (Sita-type) daughter-in- law. Hence when Kaveri plots a conspiracy the audience / viewers see her in light of dharmik evil (adharmik) and despise her but sympathize with Saloni’s sufferings (like that of goddess Sita) and is satisfied when evil is punished and the dharmik order is restored (although temporarily). 15 Hence the Hindu epilogical plots as ‘discursivity foundations’ is highly evident in the Hindi satellite television’s DLDS despite a few alterations in order to contextualize the serials into the contemporary.

Hence, Indo-Fijian women are aware of the use of the dharmik principles as discursive foundations in Bollywood films and Hindi satellite television serials and are accustomed to this style. Thus if the endings of films do not adhere to the stability of these dharmik principles then the viewers tend to reject the film. A very good example of this is Karan Johar’s multi-star cast film Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna (KANK) (2005) (with celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Preity Zinta, Abhishek Bachchan and Kirron Kher) put in hot water because it ends with a married woman jilting her husband whom apparently she does not love, to be with her lover (who also jilts his wife). The ending of the film did not digest well with the Indo-Fijian audience (especially women) and there were lots of criticisms on the movie since the dharmik principle was destabilized. The portrayal of an Indian woman, Maya (Rani Mukerji) leaving her husband (not because he drinks and ill treats her) because she is not in love with him but another man, shatters the flowery image that the Indo-Fijian women have of their counterparts in the homeland. Hence adherence to the dharmik principles in films and serials gains recognition and popularity in the diaspora.

16 4.0 Female portrayal in Bollywood: A Feminist approach

Gyatri Spivak argues that her definition of the term ‘woman’ in resting it on the word ‘man’ is not a reactionary position but by deconstructing the opposition between the two, it finally shows that it is a binary opposition that displaces itself (Spivak,1996:54). Similarly, women of the Bollywood films from the ‘black and white’ period till to-date are being cast opposite the male leads. This practice can be traced back to the dharmik orders / principles of Hinduism. Feminists, according to Subramani, believe that the basic images of women portrayed on screen are round characters and do not conform to the role and experiences of the women (counterparts) in society. They argue that ‘within a sexist ideology and male dominated cinema, woman is represented as what she represents for men (Subramani, 1995:136). What the feminists proclaim as round female characters are actually mimics of the females in the Hindu epics. The primary research reveals that 85% of the Indo-Fijian women think that they are mainly influenced towards the homeland through the plot and characters of the Bollywood cinema. There is an awareness that these plots and characters derive from the Hindu epics hence many Indo- Fijian women relate to such ‘round’ portrayals.

The Ramayana covers a wide range of female characters of the positive and negative nature. Some of the prominent epilogical archetypes found in Bollywood films are the Kaushilya-type mothers, Sita-type wives / lovers (the dharmapatni-the wife of dharma), Surphnekha versions of vamps, Kaikayee adaptations of the jealous step mother (who would blindly fight for the rights of her son against the common social good) and Mantra (the evil advisor of queen Kaikayee) sort of negative facilitators who act as sub-villains. Vijay Mishra employs a comparable list of female stereotypes of the Bollywood cinema namely: the mother, heroine, villain, buffoon/ courtly fool or women being represented simply as voyeuristic objects. (Mishra, 2002).

Hence when any of the above mentioned stereotypes appear on screen and as the plot progresses, the Indo-Fijian women with Hindu epilogical knowledge or Bollywood cinema familiarity easily identify themselves and others around them with the characters 17 on the screen. This is in line with Vijay Mishra’s claim that the Bollywood cinema functions as one heterogeneous text under the sign of transcendental dharmik principles. It is for this reason that the form is so patently synchronic in the sense that anyone familiar with the syntagm can enter into this cinema at any point and pick up its narrative (Mishra, 2002: 13). Subhas Ghai’s Khalnayak (Villain) ( 1993) makes colossal references to the Ramayana where Jackie Sheroff (the hero) is called ‘Ram Sinha’ after Lord Rama, Madhuri Dixit (the heroine) is Ganga named after the holy Ganges and Sanjay Dutt (Ballu) is mostly referred to as Khalnayak (epilogically bad) and is compared to Ravana. Thus it is evident that most of the stereotypes (both male and female) of the Bollywood films are drawn from the Hindu epics.

A closer gaze at Ganga in Khalnayak authenticates the feminist views on the portrayal of women in Bollywood films. Ganga who is a sub-inspector in a woman’s penitentiary is portrayed as an independent, stringent and strong-willed Indian woman. For the sake of her love / lover (Ram) she is ready to jump in the well of death and capture the dangerous escapee (Ballu). Using her feminine charms she is almost successful in turning him in until the stereotypical emotion (maya) of womanhood emerges in Ganga and she sympathizes with Ballu and helps him escape a police encounter. Her emotions win over her call for duty and instead of expunging Ram’s disrepute, she brings further disrepute. A strong willed woman succumbs to female emotions, a stereotypical representation of women. Ganga here is represented as what she represents for men in society. Secondly, the dharmik order must not be destabilized, Ganga has already temporary disrupted the order by helping Ballu escape the police encounter. Therefore, at the end, she accepts her fate of imprisonment without arguing her innocence. It takes a man (villain) to restore the order by intruding and proclaiming in court Ganga’s innocence comparing her purity to that of goddess Sita. Ganga, towards the end appears a stereotypically dependent character and this influences the thoughts and beliefs of many Indo-Fijian women who like Ganga depend on the men in their lives and believe in the concept of serving their husbands. These women start believing that what they see on screen is the picture of what the Indian women practice in India. 18 Another stereotypical female character in this film is Ballu’s mother (Rakhee) who apparently has unconditional love for her son and is unable to renounce him despite his pessimistic behaviour. This concept in the film is strengthened by an occasional background song on motherhood and motherly emotions (maya): “Oh ma tujhe salaam, apne baache tujhe hai pyare, Ravan ho ya Ram” (Oh mother salute to you, your children are precious to you whether they be like Ravana or Rama). Similar motherly sentiments are portrayed in films such as: Main Tulsi Tere Aagan Ki (I am the holy basil of your garden-1978), Araadhana (The worship-1969), Karan Arjun (1995) and Mother India (1938). In Mother India however, the physical mother is idealized with the land (India) as suggested by the introductory song “Dharti maata jeevan bhar hum tere hi goon gaya, jitni bar janam ho apna tere godh mei aye, Bharati Ma.” (Oh mother earth (India) all our lives we will sing your praises, every time we are re-incarnated on your lap shall we come, oh mother India). In the film, Radha (Nargis) is a stereotypical mother and dharmapatni (wife of dharma) as she fends for her children (and husband who becomes disabled) and keeps her dignity intact. However, at the end she is forced to shoot her own son in order to keep the reputation of the village intact. She only does this because her son Birju (Sunil Dutt) gives her no choice by forcing a daughter (Rupa) of the village in eloping with him and trying to bring disrepute to her on her wedding day. This is dharmikally wrong, hence Radha (the mother) who is symbolic of the mother of the entire village (Mother India) has to step in and stabilize this dharmik destruction. Upon shooting her son and protecting the village honour she transforms into a “devi” (goddess / saint) like figure and becomes worthy of worship.

Relatively, in Main Tulsi Teri Aagan Ki the plot revolves around Tulsi (Asha Parekh), Sujata (Nutan), the hero’s mother and Leelabai. Tulsi, a sex worker in Leelabai’s brothel becomes vulnerable when men try to engulf her and runs away from the brothel where the hero, Kuwarji (Vijay Anand) comes to her rescue and shelters her in his house showing sympathy and affection. The stereotypical woman of the Bollywood Cinema succumbs to the male affection shown and falls in love (the inevitable) with Kuwarji. When the Hero’s mother, who is very superficial, discovers this relationship, she falls ill 19 and emotionally forces her son away from Tulsi. Tulsi being a sex worker ironically has such a dharmik (holy) name, and she lives up to her name through her actions by sacrificing her love for Kuwarji in forcing him to vow that he would marry a respectable woman, Sujhata (Nutan) thus fulfilling his mother’s wishes. In Spirak’s terms, Tulsi produces more than her worth for the man who owns her as she tells Kuwarji that a whore cannot be a respectful man’s wife and that she is content with his love even if she does not get to be with him physically.

A harsh confrontation between Sujhata and Tulsi leads to Tulsi’s sacrificial suicide where Tulsi turns into a Good Samaritan / canonized figure of womanhood. Such female characters are easily accepted by the Indo-Fijian women in comparison to the character of Maya (Rani Mukerji) in Kabhi Alvida Na Kahna, as Tulsi despite being a prostitute, dharmikally does the right thing through her sacrifice.

The ingredient of women and emotion (maya) once more emerges where Sujhata voluntarily accepts Tulsi’s son and treats him better than her own. She also conforms to societal conventions and plays the pardoning, submissive wife and is more than willing to forgive her husband’s affair with Tulsi upon his death bed. Surprisingly she does not see the reason why her husband should apologize for the affair that he had had with Tulsi. At this point, Sujhata like Tulsi is also portrayed as a round and opinion less character controlled by the men (husband) in society. The plot of this film would have been questionable if Sujhata, instead of Kuwarji was having an affair, like Maya in ‘KANK.’

Women very often in Bollywood portrayals are reminded of their traditional, social and religious obligations or in Vijay Mishra’s terms; the dharmik order. Women must sacrifice to keep the order like goddess Sita took an aagni parikcha (fire test for purity) to satisfy not only her husband but the society as well. But this wasn’t enough as she had to further prove her purity by submitting herself to the earth goddess. Similarly in Araadhana, Vandana (Sharmila Tagore) is portrayed as a woman of endurance and suffers after the dharmik / societal order is broken, upon her and Arun’s (Rajesh Khanna) 20 secret marriage without parental / societal consent. She conceives a child and Arun dies a tragic death, her son is not going to be accepted as a respectable being hence she is forced to give him up for adoption. She secretly endures the pain of separation from her son and sacrifices her life in prison for a crime which her son had accidentally committed. Her only dream is to fulfill her late husband’s wishes, what she desires in never revealed and is secondary. Feminists view such portrayals of women as ‘round’ and subservient to the male portrayals on the screen and their counterparts in society. The female characters on screen fulfill their expected / stereotypical duties without complaining since this is how the film maker perceives Indian women in society. Female filmmakers have also failed in the portrayal of realistic women characters since most of these film makers are interested in monetary returns and are anxious to change plots or represent women realistically rather than the stereotypical representations as this would upset the societal / dharmik ‘food chain’ and if the films are not well consumed by the audience, it fails at the box office. A good example of this is Karan Johar’s brave move to portray reality within marriages in Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna ( 2005) where a married woman, Maya (Rani Mukerji) has no love / attraction towards her husband yet falls in love with Rhea’s (Preity Zinta) husband, Dev (Shahrukh Khan) thus has an extra-marital affair (a bitter reality of life). This portrayal of woman (breaking dharmik principles) was not well consumed / digested by society hence the film faced doom in India and also received harsh critics in Fiji. Such portrayals spoil the imagined India for the Indo-Fijian women since these women believe that India is a kingdom of authentic Indian culture as Vijay Mishra states that, ‘the girmitiyas and their children have this idea that Fiji Indians are somewhat lesser than the inhabitants of Rama’s kingdom (Mishra, 1979:4).

Other filmmakers such as: Rakesh Roshan and Kundan Shah, have been braver, in the portrayal of women in Khoon Bhari Mang (1988) and Kya Kehna (1999) where the plots revolve around the female leads, showing the stronger aspects of feminity (moving away from the Sita stereotypes to the venging Kali / Durga). Both women Arti (Rekha) and Priya (Priety Zinta) are initially vulnerable and are being taken advantage of, by the men 21 in their lives however they come back strongly to fight for themselves from society and the men who had undermined them. However, the continuity of the strength of these two characters is disrupted as towards the end both characters require male assistance to avenge their adversaries. Arti needs JD’s (Shatrughan Sinha) help to kill Sanjay (Kabir Bedi) and Priya accepts Arun’s (Chandarchur Singh) offer to marriage as her dad (Anupam Kher) suggests that it would be rather difficult for a woman to nurture a child alone thus needed a man’s help. Hence, Priya’s earlier battle against societal conventions and single motherhood loses its strength and the idea of women and weakness silently emerges like a dark shadow. This shadow of darkness lingers around many female characters as they conform to their stereotypical counterparts of the Hindu epics and appear rather (what feminists claim) unrealistic to their contemporary counterparts where reality seems to be painted over with a flowery fantasy which appears attractive and stable to the audience (at home and the diaspora).

Despite the portrayal of unrealistic characters, a large majority of the Indo-Fijian women (according to the primary research) state that it is through such romanticized images of the Bollywood cinema that many Indo-Fijian women are allured to their imaginary and authentic India.

22 5.0 Female portrayals of the Hindi Satellite Television’s Daily-Life Drama Serials.

The Hindi satellite television industry and the Bollywood cinema are two separate genres / industries but have marked similarities. The two are inter related as in many cases the plots, characters and themes have been mimicked / copied from Bollywood films to the daily–life drama serials of the satellite television. As Mishra also states that the film industry has very successfully intervened into television programs (Mishra, 2002: 3)

It is now almost a decade and a half since international satellite services were first seen via cable, to the homes in India, inaugurating an era of profusion of private channels in a society that had previously known a government controlled national broadcasting network, Doordarshan (Sinclair, 2004). The introduction of such a media not only gave Indians multiple choices but opened a new era of exposure and discovery and its demand saw a boom in the industry. Mishra states that since January 1991 when satellite broadcasting began from Hong Kong on Star TV (Satellite Transmission of Asia Pacific Region TV) the media scene in India has gone through a radical change. In the 1998 financial year, Zee Television, for instance had grossed 475 Crore rupees (115 million) (Mishra, 2002: 2-3). This shows the great success / acceptance of satellite television in India and today the industry and its earnings have grown massively.

Satellite television has not only been phenomenally successful in India but in the diaspora as well. In Fiji, Fiji TV (premier television service provider) was setup in June 1994 and was granted a license to provide free to view and pay television services in Fiji. Fiji TV owns Fiji’s number one free-to-view channel, Fiji One and pay TV services; Sky Fiji (which compromises of Sky Plus, Sky Entertainment (Hindi) and Sky Sports) and Sky Pacific which has fourteen channels with three Hindi channels namely: Bollywood Xtra, Star Entertainment and Zee Classic / Zee Premier (www.fijitv.com.fj). The airing of Hindi satellite television’s DLDS and Bollywood films through Sky Fiji (and later Sky Pacific) became very popular amongst Indo-Fijians. The plot of the Hindi satellite 23 television’s DLDS and its characters became very popular amongst many Indo-Fijians as the primary research shows that a large majority of the subjects in concern, spend hours watching these Hindi DLDS or just talking about its plot, characters, ceremonies and showcase of the latest fashion. This leads to the mimicking of the various aspects of these serials in the Indo-Fijian society during religious festivals, child birth ceremonies, wedding rituals / ceremonies and so on. The survey reveals that Bollywood films and Hindi satellite television’s DLDS (in comparison to the internet, religious (epics) texts and the Diaspora poetics) were the two major means of influencing / connecting the Indo- Fijian women to the Indian culture / traditions (ceremonies, costumes / dress, rituals, dances, decorations, songs and the like). These women gain more ideas / knowledge of the cultural, social and religious aspects of India through the above mentioned media as in contemporary times Hindu religious prayer functions (reading of the Ramayana and the Gita) have become rare and mostly recited during special occasions. Hence, these women attach themselves to the very next alluring thing which is ‘Indian’ which in this case would be the Bollywood cinema and the Hindi satellite television.

The viewers, both of the homeland and the diaspora, easily ‘digest’ and get hooked onto the Hindi satellite television’s DLDS as these programmes follow similar trends as Bollywood films. Both the Bollywood cinema (industry) and Hindi satellite television’s DLDS have Vedic fundamentals where dharmik principles are employed as the foundation of the plot, themes and characters. However, unlike the Bollywood films which lasts for approximately two and a half to three hours (and may have a sequel produced later) serials are prolonged for seasons where each series lasts for approximately 20-30 minutes. Due to the prolonged production of the serial, both the positive and negative characters mimicked from the Bollywood films grow over the years of production and become shoddier in character and appear very unrealistic. The gender archetypes of the Bollywood cinema are also evident in the serials; however, these archetypes are at times portrayed to their extremes. Such extremes include: gender bias, male supremacy, female submission, male rage, women’s / men’s possessiveness, 24 jealousy and hunger for money, greed for power or protecting family repute and the like. Any one particular serial could have a variety of characters where each type (negative, positive) could be represented by more than one character.

The female actors of the Hindi satellite television are cast similarly to their counterparts of the Bollywood cinema. Content analysis of Indian TV programmes on the national network, Doordarshan in the 1980’s have shown that prime-time shows cast women as docile homemakers and as objects of male desire. A broad conclusion is that Indian TV in the late 1990’s perpetuates, across channels, the 1980’s stereotypical images of women, images that have their roots in Vedic, colonial and nationalist literature. (Malhotra and Rogers, 2000). However in recent times there has been some development in the satellite television industry in the portrayals of Indian women. The primary focus of images of Indian women changed to some extent from only being portrayed as domestic house wives, mothers and women as sexual beings to working / westernized /educated women. Apparently women are gaining greater visibility in television programming but the fundamental principles / stereotypes are still evident.

Therefore, the above does not suggest that the idea of women as housewives and mothers have been eliminated, this obliteration becomes impossible as such stereotypes (deeply rooted in dharmik principles) facilitate the continuity of the TV serial as the audience (both Indian and of the diaspora) are accustomed to such portrayals and removing these archetypes would mean disrupting the dharmik order or breaking societal norms as the survey shows that a large number of females favour these stereotypical female portrayals.

Occasionally there are portrayals of educated and independent women. However, these strong portrayals mellow down when the female character succumbs to emotions, for instance, helplessly falling in love with a man with a lower status or a man whom she can not be with (the situation could later change in the due course of the serial). In the serial Bano Mein Teri Dulhan (Being your bride) at one stage, the re-incarnated Vidya (a law student from the city) now called Divya, falls in love with Amar (a simple poor country 25 boy who is a reincarnation of her husband, Sagar) where chances of them being together are slim. She is undecided of her actions and succumbs to multiple emotions. Similarly, in several serials the lead females easily succumb to the emotions clustered around their husbands, partners, children, family or situations. Relatively, Parvati (Sakshi Tanwar) of the serial Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki (The Story of Every Household) voluntarily surrenders her husband (Om) who is amnesiastic to live with another woman and his three daughters from her (this family unit emerged when Om was thought dead by Parvati and other family members). Parvati asks her own daughter Shruthi to ‘back off,’ as she insists on her father’s return. Here Parvati is more concerned about the happiness and goodwill of her husband’s new family and sacrifices her own peace and happiness. A dharmapatni who sacrifices and lets the gods decide her fate. This extreme portrayal of goodness in Indian women (showing how Indian women should be) is very accommodating for the programme’s continuity and conservative viewers although appearing very unrealistic to the skeptical eye. Nonetheless the above does not imply that Indo-Fijian women who are aware of such portrayals would stop watching the serial.

Shruthi however unwilling to make a sacrifice like her mother, is portrayed as a more realistic image of what a daughter would do in a similar situation to re-unite with a lost father. This is one of the many serials which portrays a wide shade of Sita like dharampathni wives and Manthra / Kaykayee like negative females stereotypes. The rest of the cast falls between these two extreme ends of typical good and evil.

For a prolonged time KGGK had been moving on the leg of one story that is the conflict between Parvati / Janaki (Sakshi Tanwar) and Trishna (Mita Vashist). The plot revolves around these two characters and the binary of epilogical goodness and evil stretches to extremes at times. For instance, when Parvati is believed to be dead and Trishna had taken the house crushing the spirits of everyone in the house. Parvati re-enters in the form of Janaki with Aruna Irani as her mentor (trying to play the theme of Krishna / Arjuna and the Mahabharata / Geeta with the concept of fighting against her own relatives and defeating Trishna) and plays an arrogant rich woman to which Trishna is beholden, while 26 at the same time pretending to be uncaring of everything Trishna does against her relatives. Of course she is still a good daughter-in-law so she manages to always help them against Trishna. There is no way that Parvati could really / truly turn bad as this would not only upset the dharmik principle of goodness but destroy her stereotypically goodness as well.

Therefore, female leads such as Parvati in Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, Salooni in Saat Phere: Saloni Ka Safar (Marriage: Saloni’s journey), Tulsi in Qui ki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi (The Mother-in-law was once in the Daughter-in-law’s shoes) Kumkum in Kumkum and the like, diligently work for the course of goodness to an extreme thus sacrificing their own happiness and well being. These women are portrayed in terms of how women should be (for men, the family and in society). Hence in feminists’ terms, they are portrayed as round and unrealistic in comparison to their counterparts in the contemporary society (both in India and in Fiji). Similarly negative females portrayals such as Trishna in Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, Kaveri in Saat Prere: Saloni ka Safar and the like, are portrayed as endlessly kniving, conspiring, and cynical beings, which again when one stops to think, appear unrealistic (women with no heart and feelings at all) to actual women in society.

Therefore, this section shows the fact that female stereotypes emerge from epilogical foundations and are mimicked from Bollywood films. Nonetheless, unlike the above mentioned, these portrayals in the Hindi satellite daily-life drama serials start appearing windy and extreme due to the many seasons of production. Hence, the typically ‘good’ or ‘bad’ seem to appear superficial and unrealistic to their counterparts of the Indian / diasporic societies. Despite this, (ironically) a large majority of the Indo-Fijian women interviewed reveal that they enjoy watching serials from the Hindi satellite television as means of entertainment and learning the Indian culture and practices. 56% of these women state that the genre of family drama mostly allures Indo-Fijian women to India whereas 30% favour romantic sagas, 12% believe that mythologies and diasporic issues 27 mostly influence Indo-Fijian women towards India and the remaining 2% opted for comedy and action thrills. This shows that the Indo-Fijian women are influenced more strongly by particular genus of the Hindi satellite television.

28 6.0 Romanticized images and the diasporic desire: a paradox

The people of the diaspora are in many cases; a confused and ‘hyphenated’ group (Indo- Fijian). Hence they are somewhat marginal and uncertain of their true identities. Some cling more onto the “Indo” portion while others on the “Fijian” portion of their identities. Nonetheless, since they reside in Fiji the ‘Fijian’ part of their identity appears stable to them but the Indo part (Indianess) needs assurance and conformity. Hence many (if not all) Indo-Fijians are ready to embrace what ever means of Indian culture / values that come their way. In Fiji, the Bollywood films are abundant in supply and cheaply available in pirated copies, (despite the enforcement of the copyright law in the country) thus Indo-Fijians mostly via Bollywood films cling onto the values and cultures of India and are influenced towards the homeland.

Similarly, Vijay Mishra points out that if the consumption of Indian culture is anything to go by, the first generation NRIs desperately tries to hang onto values that mark their difference from the rest of the nation state. These differences are generally about tradition, continuity, family and often, the importance given to arranged marriages. A diasporic imaginary thus grows out of a sense of being marginalized, of being rejected outright by nation states (Mishra, 1996b). As a consequence diasporic peoples find it difficult, perhaps even impossible to present their “new” nation states to consciousness (Mishra, 2002:237).

Therefore, the Bollywood cinema and Hindi satellite television become a crucial link for the Indo-Fijians towards the homeland, in an imaginary sense. This imaginary connection to India enables them to mark their differences from the other races in Fiji and to take refuge in the imaginary homeland when marginalized or rejected by the host land, as in the case of coups in Fiji. The Bollywood Cinema in this regard has been an important medium of bringing the “homeland” into the diaspora thus creating a sense of shared feelings of connections across the various groups that fall under the Indian diaspora.

29 The imagination of the Indo-Fijian women thrives on the “romanticized images” of the Bollywood Cinema and Hindi satellite television’s daily-life drama series, which employ epilogical archetypical characters to which Indo-Fijian women are accustomed to and thus respond to. Romanticized images are flowery (fantasy) images painted on the screen for the audience to consume. The most readily available or easily accessible link to the homeland for Indo-Fijian women according to the primary research is the Bollywood cinema which is followed by the Hindi satellite television’s DLDS. The irony here is that the stereotypical female characters of the above mentioned genres do not relate to the experiences of these Indo-Fijian women. The Independent cinema which avoids stereotypes in characterization and situations / plot and is closer to the Indian situation and experiences does not arise much diasporic desire / nostalgia towards India amongst the Indo-Fijian women.

Subramani creates an interesting paradox, stating that; Indo-Fijians (some) regard the Bollywood cinema as a medium of keeping in touch with Hindi or Indian values. However the Bombay movies, often are sleazy imitation of Hollywood cinema, especially in the depiction of sex and violence are seen as representing Indian values whereas the new cinema (Independent / Art) is ignored as either ‘sluggish’ or ‘difficult’ when in fact it presents the ‘workaday’ world in an authentically Indian milieu (Subramani, 1995:118).

Relatively, the primary research of the Indo-Fijian women of the Samabula area of study reveals that it is the false romanticized images of the Bollywood cinema and Hindi satellite television which many of these women are accustomed to and prefer rather than the ‘plain Jane’ portrayals of the Art cinema. These women are ready to believe and connect with the ‘false’ and reject the ‘real / actual’ because the former appears more appealing as Subramani states; “The audience want crap; the movie industry provides them with crap. The entrepreneurs however do not disclose the fact that vast sums of money are put into advertising in order to sell that crap (Subramani, 1995:117). It is this “crap,” which Subramani talks about, that creates diasporic desires and connects the 30 Indo-Fijian women to India. Additionally, Bollywood films have become the major contributors of diasporic desires since Hindi films are readily available in numerous video outlets in Fiji selling for only a dollar or two for a pirated copy.

Moreover, the primary research revealed that Indo-Fijian women are entranced by the romance, family drama, wedding celebrations and religious festivals portrayed through the Bollywood cinema and Hindi satellite television and are attracted to the colorful dress (costumes) jewelry, dances and songs and the very appealing images of the star cast on the screen. Despite the questionability of the authenticity of their diasporic desire and the connection of these Indo-Fijian women to the imaginary homeland (through the false romanticized images of the Bollywood cinema and Hindi Satellite television), this imaginary connection is strong and apparently the most popular / available medium for them to keep in touch with the homeland. This is the reality of the situation since other means of connection, such as; the Diaspora poetics and the internet only appeal to a selected elite group of Indo-Fijian women unlike the Bollywood films and Hindi satellite television series which just require puppets nodding and responding to the false romanticized images or in Subramani’s words consumption of “the crap.”

31 7.0 Rejection of the Independent (Art) Cinema

The Independent cinema for the purpose of this paper would refer to what is commonly known as “The New Indian cinema” or Art films. The Independent cinema is known for its serious content, realism and naturalism, generally exploring a wide range of subjects of complex human circumstances and relationships within an Indian setting / society.

Although part of the Indian cinema, the Independent cinema differs markedly from the Bollywood cinema as the former avoids the use of romanticized images and uses the cinema as an artistic platform to explore and reveal important areas of the Indian experiences.

Bollywood and Independent films have large numbers of Indian and diasporic viewers. Nonetheless it is apparent through the survey that the Bollywood films are more popular and favourable in comparison to Independent (Art) films both in India and the diaspora. The primary research reveals that Indo-Fijian women are more familiar with Bollywood films and least favour Art films in terms of stirring nostalgic feelings towards India. Indo- Fijian women mostly believe that Bollywood is the genre which mostly connects them to the homeland. The Hindi Satellite television’s DLDS was the second most favoured choice. Therefore, it is comprehensible through this survey that the Indian Artistic films do not attract massive Indo-Fijian audience that the popular (Bollywood) films do. Similarly, there is less of an Art film audience in India, unlike the European Art film industry which had a major influence on Indian Art films. Ironically, although the Artistic films are much closer to the Indian reality than the popular films which are mostly fantasies, Indo-Fijian women apparently reject the realities of the homeland portrayed through the Independent cinema. This rejection of the Art films reassures the audience’s conformity / familiarity with the Hindu epics, stereotypical characters and the stability provided by the dharmik principles and societal conventions / norms via typical Bollywood films. Apparently most Bollywood films conclude in line with the stabilizing dharmik principles via which Indo-Fijian women easily adapt to the romanticized images 32 and connect it to the authenticity of the homeland thus painting a flowery picture of India. In contrast, Art films are produced / filmed under low budgets thus are less appealing because the reality it shows sometimes shatters the romanticized images and (imagined) memories of the homeland in the minds of the Indo-Fijian women. This is one reason why Indo-Fijian women reject what they see in Art films. The ‘overfeeding’ of Bollywood films in the market and the ‘consumption’ of these films by the Indo-Fijian women (diasporic Indians) have heavily contributed to the rejection (disassociation) of the bitter realities against the flowery images of the Bollywood version of India.

Moreover, the Independent cinema boldly tackles issues of controversies in the Indian society exposing its weaknesses and questioning conventions and cultural practices. The rejection of the Independent cinema actually reveals the rejection of taboo issues of the Indian society which gets telecasted around the globe. Relatively, when Deepa Mehta’s Art film “Fire” was released in 1996, where there was huge retaliation and uproar in India as Mehta had discussed taboo issues of wife negligence by Indian men and homosexuality in women which did not ‘digest’ well with the Indians and theatres and billboards screening and advertising the film were burnt down with prolonged protests against the film. Moreover, there were also controversies in the Indo-Fijian society when the film was released in Fiji.

A close look at Art films show that the emphasis is on the plot and heavy dialogues rather than the costumes, makeup or the popularity of the artists as is the case in Bollywood. Mahesh Bhatt in his film Zakhm (1998) has Ajay Devgan (the lead actor) move around through out the film (which revolves around a day or so) in a pair of white trousers and blue shirt which surprisingly does not become an eye sore because the ultimate aim of the film was not to promote the actor / fashion but to focus on the issue of race relations which is still a lingering problem in contemporary India.

Subramani states that ‘in its search for more honest values, the new cinema sometimes consciously subverts western middle class attitudes in commercial cinema for example, in 33 Ray’s films where there’s seldom love at first sight, instead the characters discover each other and fall in love after marriage. Apur Sansar (1958, The World of Apu) has the most unusual marriage: Apu is persuaded to marry Aparna when the bridegroom turns out to be a half wit’ (Subramani, 1995:119). Such Art films focus on the realistic problems associated with Indian marriages unlike the fairy-tales of most Bollywood films.

In contemporary times, Art films are still being produced. Deepa Mehta, born in Punjab, India in 1949 is a controversial Indian Canadian film director and Script writer who is based in Toronto and Delhi. She is famously known for her contributions to the Independent Cinema through her elements Trilogy Fire (1996), Earth (1998), and Water (2005), all of which were set in India. ‘Fire’ which is set in contemporary India was a highly controversial film in India due to its depictions of gender, marriage and homosexuality and particularly because of the use of the names of Hindu goddesses with characters and portraying these characters as lesbians. In the film the wives of two brothers who are subjected to the traditional Indian female role of silently cooking, cleaning and producing children to occupy their time, find in each other what their husbands refuse to give. Thus the two women enter into a lesbian relationship.

The two leading roles in this film, Sita (Nadita Dass) and Radha (Shobana Azmi) become very strong character types when together as one compliments the weakness of the other. The most challenging scene (climax) is when Sita’s husband (Kalbushan Karbanda) finds out about this secret affair and confronts her. Consequently, he literally sets her on fire. Nonetheless she escapes in a dismal state and meets up with Radha who waits for her at the temple. Thus they elope in hope of a better future together. A lesbian relationship has been given birth and nurtured in this film where both the females discover their true nature and choose to live authentically no matter what the cost. In India, and Fiji as well, Hinduism / Hindu movements (other religions as well) have no tolerance for such issues and despite its existence, a preferred blind eye is turned towards it and there is a lot of denials. Such issues which many Indian / Indo Fijian families try to conceal get revealed through an Art film like Fire which questions the status quo and the status of Indian 34 women, and women for once are not represented as what they represent for men as Sita tells Radha “isn’t it amazing, we are so bound by customs and rituals, somebody just has to press my button, there’s a button marked “tradition” and I start responding like a trained monkey.” Fire (1996). Societal conventions and dharmik principles are destabilized in this film thus the film gets rejected by the large majority in society (India and the diaspora). This large majority does not comprise only of males but a significant number of females who cling to societal conventions and dharmik principles and supporting such a film or idea would mean stepping out of the Lakshman Rekha (boundary of safety).

Ironically, the Bollywood Cinema also made a film called Girlfriend (2004), which is based on homosexuality and obsession. However, unlike ‘Fire’ the sexual experience between the two girls Sapna (Amrita Arora) and Tanya (Isha Kopikar) occurs only once and that too, under the influence of alcohol. Nonetheless the movie explains that Tanya being molested when young had led to her hatred for men and became a lesbian. Sapna later falls in love with Rahul (Aashish Chowdhry) who finds the friendship between the two girls weird and questions Sapna who ironically doesn’t know what has been happening. Tanya’s growing obsession ends when she is brutally killed during a fight with Rahul by falling off several stories of a building. A perfect ending, the lesbian who disrupted the dharmik order / societal conventions is killed, almost like a warning to all those who defy the dharmik stability. This film was better received by the public as there is only a temporary disruption to the dharmik order / principles but there is stability at the conclusion. Had the film concluded otherwise, with Sapna falling for Tanya as well, there would have definitely been a lot of controversies as in the case of Fire. This reveals that the viewers (Indians / diaspora) turn a blind eye to what is actually happening in society but favour ‘romanticized images’ which are unrealistic in order to maintain the stability of dharmik principles in society.

The year 1998 saw the release of Deepa Mehta’s 1947 Earth which relayed the story of the partition of India and the effects of colonialism from the vantage point of a young 35 Pasi girl, who is part of an independent sect that is neutral among Sikhs, Muslims and Hindus. The film depicts the mistrust, racism, religious intolerance and violence that erupted during the partition.

Finally, the last film of Mehta’s Trilogy, Water (2005) also faced controversies, forcing changes in its location from India to Sri Lanka. The film is about Indian widows in the 1930’s. In the past and present, women whose husbands died were forced to enter widow houses. Labeled as worthless because their measure of worth, their husbands, were gone, they were segregated from society with their heads shaven off and were often forced to prostitution in order to survive. Even a 10 year old widow (Chuhiya) is sent to the house of a reputable man, thus raped. The film focuses on the bitter realities concerning women in India, quoting the sacred Hindu text: “A widow should be long suffering until death, self-restrained and chaste. A virtuous wife who remains chaste when her husband has died goes to heaven. A woman who is unfaithful to her husband is re-born in the womb of a jackal” (The laws of Manu: Chapter 5 verse 156-161 in Water, 2005).

These Art films made by Deepa Mehta (like many others of the genre) challenge the blind traditions and tries to break the stereotypes in India. Hence Indian and Indo-Fijian women alike disassociate themselves from the dark realities revealed through Art films and instead associate their identities with the flowery images of the homeland through Bollywood films (although very unrealistic to contemporary experiences of Indian women) which places no threats to dharmik principles / orders and societal conventions.

Therefore, this section enables a comparison between the Bollywood and the Independent cinema where the primary research reveals that the Indo-Fijian women prefer the romanticized images of the former rather than the harsh reality of the cultural, social and religious aspects depicted in the latter.

Apart from cinema, there are other media / sources available to the Indo-Fijian women to relate to the homeland; these are namely: the internet, Bollywood and India related 36 magazines, traveling (visiting the homeland), diaspora poetics (literary works of Indo- Fijian writers on / about the diaspora experience) and others. The following section however, focuses on how the literary works by the Indo-Fijian writers on the Indo-Fijian diasporic experiences link the contemporary urban Indo-Fijian women to the homeland.

37 8.0 Diaspora Poetics – imaginary connection to the homeland

Diaspora poetics refers to the literary works on the Indo-Fijian diaspora (indenture experiences) by the Indo-Fijian writers. Many Indo-Fijian writers have emerged over the years with some involved with the ideologies and experiences of Girmit and others not. The Girmit ideologies and experiences nonetheless have given birth to a number of Indo- Fijian writers who write on the diasporic subject and critic the works of other diaspora writers. Writers like Raymond Pillai, Subramani and Satendra Nandan are well known for their works and contributions on the subject of the Indo – Fijian diaspora and particularly the Girmit ideology / experiences. The works of these writers has given Indo-Fijian readers (elite group) pieces of the fragmented identifies which a hyphenated race (Indo- Fijians) can connect with and refuge into when threatened by the host nation state. The primary research discloses that a small percentage of the group of subjects opted for Diaspora poetics as means of influencing and connecting Indo-Fijian women towards the homeland. This small percentage comprised mostly of educated Indo-Fijian women ranging from 20 to 55 years of age.

Vijay Mishra considers literary works as forms of perception (particular ways of seeing the world) and as such they have a relation to that dominant way of seeing the world which is the social mentality or the ideology of an age. He further argues that the Girmit consciousness developed as the consequence of the 40 years of direct indenture, is false, and created by the girmitiyas themselves. Mishra states that Fiji Indian literary works kept on re-issuing versions of that falsification without the transcendence, the resolution of the conflicts and contradictions within the ideology essential for the creative artists. (Mishra, 2: 1979)

Mishra goes on to criticize the literary works of Indo-Fijian writers, mainly the works of Satendra Nandan and Subramani. Nonetheless, the aim of this essay is not to discover whether or not the works of Indo-Fijian writers re-issue ‘the conscious falsification of 38 reality of the Girmit ideology’ as claimed by Mishra (Mishra: 1979) but to ascertain how strongly the diaspora poetics and what Mishra terms as; “falsification of reality,” connects Indo-Fijian women (especially the elite group) to the imaginary homeland.

Mishra, in his essay titled “Indo-Fijian fiction and the girmit ideology” critics Indo-Fijian writers; particularly Satendra Nandan and Subramani who (according to him) made no real attempt to capture reality in any social or historical sense of the word. According to him, what these writers are concerned with is to show the nature of the “spirit” of “Girmit” man (Mishra, 1977). This paper however believes that the works of diaspora writers in showing the ‘nature of the spirit’ of ‘girmit man’ has actually (like the flowery images of the Bollywood Cinema) enabled an imaginary sense of connection to the girmit ideology / experiences and India. Some Indo-Fijian women through the questionnaire mentioned that the plight of their ancestors recorded in writing by writers of the diaspora, builds up sympathy towards the Girmit experiences of hardships. Thus a sense of bitterness towards the host land and nostalgia for the homeland arises in the contemporary generation.

Relatively, Nandan’s Poem “The Ghost” reveals the hard work and difficulties the girmitiyas faced:

Youth i lost here, and grace i gave to this island place what more than a man’s age can one give to history’s outrage’ with the faith i lived i fashioned a new world with bits from the old.

An exile full of pain, yet endured i have lived this exile 39 more gloriously than rama and built kingdoms, you may find, never than ajodhya in my ancient, eternal mind! (151-152)

Mishra states that Nandan’s poetry is strongly auto biographical (Mishra: 1977). The issue here however is not whether the work is ‘internalized’ or not but its effects on the diasporic readers. Many Indo-Fijians share similar experiences and feelings as these writers due to a past which they all share and are a part of and which cannot be erased. Therefore, the internalized allegories of these diasporic writers creates an awareness of the girmit ideologies / experiences in the Indo-Fijian society, thus there are longings for a past foregone. Many Indo-Fijians conform to these internalized allegories while others like Mishra may not. Internalizations in Diaspora poetics trigger nostalgia towards the homeland and results in the diaspora subjects feeling a sense of connection to the homeland. The Primary research carried out revealed that most Indo-Fijian women (that is those who believe that Diaspora poetics links them to the homeland) felt that the discussion of issues such as; Indian history, home, motherland, identity and sense of belonging, being questioned / presented through the works of Indo-Fijian writers made these women question and search for their roots and identities. In being aware of the obstacles and struggles of the Indenture period (through Diaspora poetics), the diasporic subjects consequently weighed the hard work and torture of their ancestors against the marginal status achieved, (Indo-Fijians) in identity and opportunities in the host land. Thus triggering nostalgia towards the homeland and arousing an imaginary sense of sympathy towards the pain and sufferings of the girmitiyas and connecting them to the more inviting / flowery pictures painted of the homeland by the diasporic writers. Relatively, the primary research reveals that 72% of the Indo-Fijian women state that they desire to go to India only for holiday purposes, another 20% prefer not to visit the homeland at all, where 8% were undecided and alarmingly none of these women want to return to India for good. Hence, the results of the primary research reflect that the nostalgia towards the homeland for these Indo-Fijian women is only imaginary and not 40 physical. When the Diaspora poetics reveals the threats, insecurities and bias of the host land, these women refuge in the imaginary homeland which provides them with mental stability and calm.

Moreover, Mishra claims that Satendra Nandan is troubled by “a race without a place” (Mishra: 1977). When Mishra himself in his book, The Bollywood Cinema: Temples of Desire mentions that “a diasporic imaginary’ emerges by growing out of a sense of being marginalized or by being rejected outright by nation states”. (Mishra: 2002). It is this ‘rejection’ by the host land which triggers writers like Nandan to write about “a race without a place” and Subramani to include the basic ‘pastness’ of the indentured labourers as a dynamic reality being given a felt presence in art. This is in line with Mohit Prasad’s argument that “Indo-Fijian” literature is a basis which is borne out to some extent by the fact that these writers find in the Girmit ideology and consciousness a rich and substantive source for their fiction. This is but one element of the literary fiction of Subramani, Pillai, Nandan and Sudesh Mishra which underlines a distancing from social realities and change. (Prasad, 1997:45). Hence, the literary works of Indo-Fijian writers’ exposes the elite Indo-Fijian women to their history, enabling this past to affect the present and leaves the readers to conclude as to how the future would be influenced.

Finally, Salman Rushdie states that: It may be that writers in my position, exiles or emigrants or expatriates, are haunted by some sense of logs. Some urge to reclaim, to look back, even at the risk of being mutated into pillars of salt. But if we do look back, we must do so in the knowledge which gives rise to profound uncertainties- that our physical alienation from India almost inevitably means that we will not be lost; that we will in short, create fictions, not actual cities or villages, but invisible ones, imaginary homelands, Indias of the mind. (Rushdie, 1992:10) 41 All Indo-Fijian writers of the Girmit ideology and experiences have contributed in one way or the other to re-collect indenture memories / memories of the homeland and preserve it in ink thus influencing / connecting the Indo-Fijian women (in particular the elite group) to the imaginary homeland / ‘Indias of the mind.’

42 9.0 Conclusion

The Girmit ideology is an important part of the Indo-Fijian history and identity. Research has shown that the labour recruits of the indenture period comprised of different composites of India, in terms of: caste, geographical location, gender, religion and culture & belief. The breakdown of the caste system was inevitable as assimilation of individuals was necessary for survival in Fiji.

The female girmitiyas were used as labourers on the fields, housekeepers and were also sexually exploited by the male force (labourers, sirdars and the European overseers). Hence, the traditional role which was played by the female girmitiyas can be encompassed within Gyatri Spivak’s triad of ‘use-value, exchange-value and surplus- value,’ where it is believed that the Indo-Fijian women during the Girmit times produced more than their worth and were a continual source of production of surpluses for the men who owned or controlled her (husbands, lovers, sirdars and the European overseers).

Moreover, this paper perceives that the contemporary Indo-Fijian women are mostly connected to India in an imaginary sense via the ‘false romanticized images’ of the Bollywood cinema and the Hindi satellite television’s daily-life drama series. This is so because the Bollywood films are easily and cheaply available in pirated copies in many outlets in the Samabula area despite the enforcement of the copyright laws in early September of 2009. Both these genus have shades of the Hindu epics used as ‘discursive foundations’ in determining its plot, themes and characters thus maintaining societal / dharmik stability.

Furthermore, the ‘false romanticized images’ of the homeland and the female characters portrayed on screen according to feminist perspectives, appear round and stereotypical. The Independent cinema (Art films) in contrast portrays women characters more realistically to their counterparts in India and the diaspora. Ironically, the Indo-Fijian women prefer the flowery images of the Bollywood cinema and the Hindi satellite 43 television which comply with the dharmik principles rather than the realities of the life in the homeland. The Diaspora poetics is also perceived as a means of expressing feelings and views on the Girmit ideology (internalizations) and seen as an active medium of transporting portions of the Indo-Fijian history and identity to the elite groups of Indo- Fijians (women) thus arousing nostalgia and connecting them to the homeland. Hence, the ‘romanticized images’ of the Bollywood cinema and the Hindi satellite television and the Diaspora poetics have enabled the Indo-Fijian women to be connected towards the different composites of the homeland mainly in an imaginary sense, or in Rushdie’s words: ‘create imaginary homelands-Indias of the mind.’

44 10.0 Bibliography

Ali, A. (2004) Girmit-Indian Indenture Experience in Fiji. Fiji Museum, Suva.

Fiji TV. (2006-2008) www.fijitv.com. Date retrieved, 16th July, 2008.

Lal, B. (1983) Girmitiyas: The Origins of the Fiji Indians. The Journal of Pacific History, Canberra.

Malhotra, S & Rogers, E. (2000) Satellite Television and the New Indian Woman. SAGE Publications. http://gaz.sagepub.com. Date retrieved, 16th July, 2008.

Mayer, A. (1963) Indians in Fiji, Oxford University Press, London.

Mishra, V. (1996b) Introduction: The Diasporic Imaginary: Theorizing the Indian Diaspora. Textual practice.

Mishra, V. (1977) Indo-Fijian Fiction. The University of Texas, Arlinngton.

Mishra, V. (1979) Rama’s Banishment: A Centenary Tribute to the Fiji Indians 1879- 1979. Heinemann Educational Books, Auckland.

Mishra, V. (2002) Bollywood Cinema-The Temples of Desire. Routledge, New York.

Prasad, M. (1997) Unravelling the Invisible Bodies in the Girmit Ideology and Consciousness. Department of Literature and Language, USP. Suva.

Rushdie, S. (1992) Imaginary Homelands: Essays and Criticism 1981-91. Grnta Books in Association with Penguin Books, London.

Sinclair, J. (2004) Globalization and Grassroots: Local Cable Operators and Their Subscriber Households in India. Paper Presented to International Association for Media and Communication Research, Porto. Alegre, Brazil.

Spivak, G. (1996) The Spivak Reader: Selected Works of Gayatri Chackravorty Spivak. Routledge, New York.

Subramani. (1995) Altering Imagination. Fiji Writers’ Association, Suva.

Uma, A. (1989) Women and her Family, Indian and Afro-American- A Literary Perspective, Envoy Press. New York.

45 11.0 Filmography

Bollywood films:

Araadhana, “The Worship,” 1969, prod.: Shakti Films, dir.: Shakti Samanta.

Earth, 1998, prod.: Anne Masson, dir.: Deepa Mehta.

Fire, 1996, prod.: Bobby Bedi, dir.: Deepa Mehta.

Hum Saath Saath Hain, “We Stand United,” 2004, prod.: Rajshri Productions, dir.: Sooraj Barjatya.

Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna, “Never Say Good-bye,” 2005, prod.: Dharma Productions, dir.: Karan Johar.

Karan Arjun, “Karana and Arjuna,” 1995, prod.: Rakesh Roshan, dir.: Rakesh Roshan.

Khalnayak, “Villain,” 1993, prod.:Ashok Ghai, dir.: Subhash Ghai.

Khoon Bhari Mang, “A Bloody Marriage,” 1988, prod.: Rakesh Roshan, dir.: Rakesh Roshan.

Kya Kehna, “What to Say,” 2002, prod.: Tips Films, dir.: Kundan Shah.

Main Tulsi Teri Aagan ki, “I’m the holy basil of your garden,” 1978, prod.: Raj Khosla, dir.: Raj Khosla.

Mother India, 1938, prod.:Ardeshir Irani, dir.:Gunjal.

Water, 2005, prod.: David Hamilton, dir.: Deepa Mehta.

Zakhm, “Unforgettable Scar / Pain,” 1998, prod.: Pooja Bhatt, dir.: Mahesh Bhatt.

46 Hindi Satellite Television (DLDS)

Bano Mein Teri Dulhan, “Being Your Bride,” 2008 created by: Shakuntalum Telefilms, dir.: Ismail Khan.

Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, “The Story of Ever Household,” 2006-2008, created by: Balaji Telefilms, prod.: Ekta Kapoor & Shobna Kapoor.

Kasturi, 2008, created by: Balaji Telefilms, pro.: Rewards Powered by You.

Kumkum, 2007-2008, created by Bag Films. Dir.: Anil Kumar.

Qui Ki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, “The Mother-in –law was once a in the daughter-in- law’s shoes,” 2006-2008, created by: Balaji Telefilms, prod.: Ekta Kapoor & Shobna Kapoor.

Saat Phere: Saloni ka Safar, “Marriage: Saloni’s Journey,” 2007-2008, created by: Sphere Origins, dir.: Rakesh Sarang.

47 APPENDIX A

SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE AND SURVEY

48 THE UNIVERSITY OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC FACULTY OF ARTS AND LAW (LL700- QUESTIONNAIRE)

Title “Means of Connecting the Contemporary Indo-Fijian women towards the Imaginary Homeland.”

Thesis “The Bollywood and Independent cinema, Satellite Television and the Diaspora poetics have played a fundamental role in the transition of Indo-Fijian women from the indenture to contemporary times and connect these Indo-Fijian women to particular composites of the imaginary homeland.”

Aim: The aim of this questionnaire is to ascertain how strongly the media such as; Bollywood and Independent Cinema, Satellite Television and the Diaspora poetics reconstitute fragments of the ideal India in the lives/memories of the contemporary Indo-Fijian women. And to what extent have these women been transformed by such media.

(The data and information collected through this questionnaire will be specifically for the purpose of the research described above. The identity of the respondents will remain confidential throughout the report).

NAME: ______OCCUPATION: ______

AGE: (Please tick the appropriate box) >20 years 20-29years 30-39years 40-49years 50-59years < 60years

1) What aspects of the Indian cultural practices, practised in contemporary India, are you familiar with? (You may tick more than one box)

Birth rituals Religious festivals Funeral rituals Marriage Practices Religious prayers

2) How have you become familiar with the above mentioned practice? ______

3) What aspects of lifestyle of the contemporary Indian women are similar to those of Indo- Fijian women?

Food Clothing Language Education opportunities Caste System Bridal Dowry Gender Equality

4) What knowledge do you have of the Indo-Fijian, diaspora? ______

49 5) What differences are there between the women of the different sub-races (North Indians, South Indians, Gujaratis, Muslims, Sikhs etc) in the contemporary Indo-Fijian society?

Physical Language Values & beliefs Religious Lifestyle Cultural Educational 6) Do you consider ‘Fiji-Hindi an appropriate language for contemporary Indo-Fijian women? (Please elaborate) ______

7) How do you compare ‘Fiji-Hindi to the language used in Bollywood, Independent Cinema, and (Hindi) Satellite Television? ______

8) How successfully has the Bollywood Cinema and the Hindi Satellite Television kept the different religions of India alive in Fiji? ______

9) What are some of the Indian cultural practices (concerning women) dying out in Fiji?

Dowry Caste marriages Child marriage Gender inequality Societal alienation of widows Re-marriage of widows

10) “In traditional Indian societies women have been seen as the secondary gender,” how are women seen in the Indo-Fijian society today?

Inferior to man Superior to man Equal to man in all aspects Equal to man in some aspects only A help hand to man A part of man

11) How strong is the Bollywood Cinema’s and Hindi Satellite Television’s emphasis on traditional Indian issues such as the caste system, dowry, child marriage and treatment of widows? (1 is low and 6 is high) ______

12) The Independent Cinema shows more realistic cultural practices/occurrences of India, through movies such as “Fire, Earth, Water and Bandit Queen.” How well are such films/ issues accepted 9 or are they not) by Indo-Fijian women? ______

50 13) Out of the different genres listed below, which connects you most strongly to aspects of the Indian culture? (Tick any three boxes)

Mythological films (Ramayana, Mahabharata etc) Romantic films Family drama Classical music (Non-filmic/religious) Modern video clips Diaspora poetics (literary works of Indo-Fijians) Religious texts Independent Cinema (focus on realistic practices) (Ramayana, Koran, etc)

14) Do you think that the female characters of the Bollywood Cinema and Hindi Satellite Television shape/influence Indo-Fijian women? How? ______15) How strongly would you rate your connections to composites/aspects of India? (1 is low and 6 is high) ______

16) How strongly do the Bollywood Cinema and Hindi Satellite Television connect Indo- Fijian women to the composites of the homeland? (1 is low and 6 is high) ______17) How strongly does the diaspora poetics (writers/writings of the diaspora) connect contemporary Indo-Fijian women to particular cultural aspects (weddings, deaths, marriages etc) of India? (1 is low and 6 is high) ______

18) (a) The term ‘celebration’ in this context refers to appreciating/ valuing the outcomes of a particular incident/ event and the term ‘mourning’ refers to grieving due to the loss as a result of a particular event/incident. In regards to the above, how do you perceive the Indo-Fijian Diaspora? Celebration Mourning b) Please explain your choice above ______

19) How would you define your connection to India (composites) through the Bollywood and Independent Cinema, Satellite Television and Diaspora poetics? Real Imaginary Bleak Strong Spiritual

(Thank you for your time and effort in answering this questionnaire)

51 THE UNIVERSITY OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC (LL700 SURVEY)

Title “Means of Connecting the Contemporary Indo-Fijian women towards the Imaginary Homeland.” Thesis “The Bollywood and Independent cinema, Satellite Television and the Diaspora poetics have played a fundamental role in the transition of Indo-Fijian women from the indenture to contemporary times and connect these Indo-Fijian women to particular composites of the imaginary homeland.” Aim: The aim of this questionnaire is to ascertain how strongly the media such as; Bollywood and Independent Cinema, Satellite Television and the Diaspora poetics reconstitute fragments of the ideal India in the lives/memories of the contemporary Indo-Fijian women. And to what extent have these women been transformed by such media.

(Please tick the appropriate box/es indicating your choice/s)

1) What connects the contemporary Indo-Fijian women to aspects (composites) of India?

4 4 4 4 ! " 4

2) What Genre of Hindi Satellite TV programmes / Bollywood films attracts the contemporary Indo-Fijian women the most?

4# 4 4$ 4% &' 4 " 4(

3) What aspects of the Indian culture is mostly copied from Satellite Television (Hindi) and Bollywood films?

4 " 4%e rituals 4 " 4$ "

4) How closely are the above mentioned rituals copied? (1 is low and 6 is high)

4) 4* 4+ 4, 4- 4.

5) Which of the following creates the most desire for aspects of India?

4 4 4

52 6) How strongly do you rate your nostalgia for India? (1 is low and 6 is high)

4) 4* 4+ 4, 4- 4.

7) How do you see India?

4 4 4 " " 4 4% 4 " "

8) How do you see Fiji?

4 4# 4% 4 4/ " 4 0

9) If you were given an opportunity to go to India, you would prefer to:

4 4 4 4"

10) What term do you think best defines Indians in Fiji today?

4 4#1 4 Q3Rs’ 4#1 4 -Fijians 4# 4#15 4#1-Indians

(Thank you for your time and effort)

NAME: Rohini Lata ID : S00000445 @ The University of the South Pacific

53 APPENDIX B

GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATIONS OF THE SURVEY AND QUESTIONNAIRES

(i) GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION OF THE SURVEY

TABLE 1.0 VIEWS OF THE INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN ON WHAT CONNECTS THEM TO THE HOMELAND /INDIA (QUESTION 1)

Internet The Hindi Diaspora Independe Bollywood Satellite Poetics nt Cinema No of Indo Cinema Television Fijian Women 7 4628154

TABLE 1.1 MOST ATTRACTIVE GENRES FOR THE CONTEMPORARY INDO- FIJIAN WOMEN QUESTION 2)

Family Drama Comedy & Romantic Mythologies / action thrills Sagas Epics / No of Indo Diasporic Fijian Women issues 56 2 30 12

TABLE 1.2 STRENGTH OF NOSTALGIC FEELINGS TOWARDS THE HOMELAND / INDIA (QUESTION 6)

Not So Strong Average Very Strong No of Indo Fijian Women 32 53 15

55 TABLE 1.3 VIEWS OF INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN IN RETURNING TO THE HOMELAND / INDIA (QUESTION 9)

Return Not go at all Go for holiday Undecided forever / for purpose No of Indo good Fijian Women 0 20% 72% 8%

FIGURE 1.0 THE MEDIUM WHICH CREATES THE MOST DESIRE FOR THE HOMELAND (QUESTION 5)

33%

59%

Key The Bollywood Cinema Diaspora Poetics Hindi Satellite Television

56 FIGURE 1.1 INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN’S PERCEPTION OF INDIA HOMELAND (QUESTION 7)

FIGURE 1.2 INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN’S PERCEPTION OF FIJI HOMELAND(QUESTION 8)

5% 2%

12% Key

Homeland 43% Hostland Land of identity 18% Motherland Land on exile Foreign Land

20%

57 (ii) GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE

TABLE 1.0 THE PERCEPTION OF THE FEMALE GENDER IN FIJI (QUESTION 10)

Inferior Superior Equal to Equal to A part of A helping to men to men men in all men in men aid to (Percentage) aspects particular men of Indo – aspects Fijian Women 56% 0 4% 18% 12% 20%

TABLE 1.1 THE STRENGTH OF THE BOLLYWOOD CINEMA AND THE HINDI SATELLITE TELEVISION REGARDING TRADITIONAL INDIAN ISSUES.(QUESTION 11)

(Percentage) Weak Average Very Strong of Indo – Fijian Women 68% 22% 10%

58 FIGURE 1.0 STRENGTH OF CONNECTION OF THE INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN TO THE VARIOUS COMPOSITES / ASPECTS OF INDIA(QUESTION 15)

14%

26% 60%

Key Medium Low High

FIGURE 1.1 STRENGTH OF THE BOLLYWOOD CINEMA AND THE HINDI SATELLITE TELEVISION IN CONNECTING THE INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN TO THE VARIOUS COMPOSITES / ASPECTS OF INDIA(QUESTION 16)

Key 80 High Medium Low 59 FIGURE 1.2 THE INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN’S PERCEPTION OF THE INDO FIJIAN DIASPORA (QUESTION 18)

22%

Key

Celebration 78% Mourning

FIGURE 1.3 INDO-FIJIAN WOMEN’S DEFINITION OF THEIR CONNECTIONS TO THE HOMELAND (INDIA) THROUGH THE VARIOUS MEDIA AVAILABLE IN FIJI (QUESTION 19)

5% 7%

13%

Ke y

Imaginary Strong Real

75% Bleak