Westminsterresearch Filmi Vs the Everyday:Hindi Films in the Lives Of
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WestminsterResearch http://www.westminster.ac.uk/westminsterresearch Filmi vs the Everyday:Hindi films in the lives of women in an Indian village Charusmita, C. This is an electronic version of a PhD thesis awarded by the University of Westminster. © Miss Charusmita Charusmita, 2020. The WestminsterResearch online digital archive at the University of Westminster aims to make the research output of the University available to a wider audience. Copyright and Moral Rights remain with the authors and/or copyright owners. Filmi vs the Everyday HINDI FILMS IN THE LIVES OF WOMEN IN AN INDIAN VILLAGE Charusmita A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the University of Westminster for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy June 2020 The copyright in this thesis is owned by the author. Any quotation from the thesis or use of any of the information contained in it must acknowledge this thesis as the source of the quotation or information. i Thesis submitted in September 2019. Passed viva examination in December 2019 with minor corrections. Final version submitted in June 2020. ii Abstract This study examines the purpose and significance of contemporary Hindi films for women living in Narwal, a north Indian village near Kanpur city. Based on ethnographic fieldwork carried out over four months, interacting with more than 80 women aged 18- 80 years, this thesis highlights the complexities of audiencehood for women living in rural India, where ‘rural’ is defined as ‘anything but urban’ and officially houses 69% of Indian population (Census, 2011). Observations, conversations and interviews were carried out in a variety of locations, in residents’ homes, local beauty parlours, schools and workplaces. Despite these women’s negligible viewership of films in cinema theatres, their limited viewership within their homes, and moral issues around women’s film consumption, films fulfil these women’s desires in real and/or imaginative spaces, with the term “filmi” connoting anything that is ‘other’ to village life in these women’s imaginations. The thesis argues that by engaging in creative cultural production, using multiple modes of filmic engagement, negotiating within their own households, and capitalising on ‘men looking away’, women are breaking the everyday rules that govern them. Their negotiations around their consumption of Hindi films indicate a slow but steady social transformation which is visible through, and enabled partly by, their dealings with Hindi cinema. Drawing on James Scott’s concept of ‘everyday resistance’ (1985) that, he argues, lies in the realm of the mundane, this study reveals that social change is evolving through a growing cluster of ‘hidden transcripts’ (Scott:1990) that women deploy in the context of their love for Hindi films. Through these, the powerful position of the village males gradually begins to be questioned, thereby challenging the status quo. iii Acknowledgement My first step into the world of academia, my doctoral thesis, is dedicated to my grandmother (nani), Sarojini Awasthi, my grandfather (Dadaji), Budhi Behari Pandey, and my uncle (mama), Nalin Awasthi, who left me for ever before they could witness me become an oak from a tender acorn. I could not do half of what I did without my mentor and supervisor Prof Rosie Thomas, who not only gave critical inputs whenever required, but also made sure I never lose my confidence in myself and my work. She always inspires me to do better, and to use punctuations more effectively! A big thanks to my pillars of strength Prof Daya Thussu, Dr Anastasia Denisova, and Dr Tarik Sabry, who offered me unwavering support whenever I felt lost and unsure of my potential. Dr Roza Tsagarousianou, my second supervisor whose academic rigour can only be matched by her warm smile, was a huge support in thinking about how we can identify resistance in the face of power, both theoretically and in life. My friends Jacqueline, Ritika, Sunil, and Rupanjana, who absorbed my outbursts and provided me with an environment that was safe, warm, secure, and happy. It is to them I owe my deepest gratitude for helping me during my darkest times. My colleagues-cum-friends-cum-coffee partners Dr Indranil, Nathasha, Dr Musab and Sarah, who kept me company while they continued their own difficult yet satisfying doctoral journeys. It is only in their company, our endless writing camps, poetry sessions, and cathartic get- togethers, that I found solidarity and strength. If and when I complete this degree, it is my mother who will be the happiest, but will express the least. It is only due to her endless support that I have reached this stage. My father, who reminded me to write every single day, deserves my most sincere thanks for leading by example through his tirelessness. For dispelling times of doubts and fear, I owe my brother, Pranjal. One can always count on him to lighten the darkest of moods with his humour, spontaneity, and imaginative ways of providing consolation. My husband, Anand, who I married in January this year, days before I left him to complete my work in London, deserves the highest accolade there is. Thank you for supporting me even when I didn’t want to face the world. Thank you for showing me who I could be. I know I have a long way to go, but I hope your perfectionist ways will bring me back to what matters the most. iv I would also like to acknowledge here my Dadi, and my new wonderful family – Bijendra Kumar ‘Bikal’, Ranjana Singh, and my dearest Anjali – for blessing me with their value-systems and the richness of their experience. Although it is “beyond the scope of this section” to name each person who wished well for me in this journey, I must thank all of my extended family, and my HUGE circle of friends, for whom the completion of this thesis will come as a big relief. People without whom this thesis would have been literally inconceivable deserve much more than my gratitude. Mr. J.N. Mishra (mamaji), mami, and my grandfather Raj Kumar Awasthi, who not only made me understand the nuances of everyday life in a village, but also taught me to respect the culture, traditions, and ethos of a place that made me who I am. My nanaji, who would probably the proudest of my completion, remains my most staunch critic, and I can only try in this lifetime to become as hungry for knowledge as he is. Women of Narwal, it is you and only you who deserve to own every word of this work. My origins lie where yours are, and I hope that one day I will be able to look you in the eye and say that I have given you as much as you gave me. I love you all. v Statement of originality: I certify that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own research, and extracts from other academic work have been duly acknowledged. Charusmita (New Delhi, September 2019) vi Table of Contents FILMI VS THE EVERYDAY ........................................................................................................................ I HINDI FILMS IN THE LIVES OF WOMEN IN AN INDIAN VILLAGE .............................................................. I ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................................... II ACKNOWLEDGEMENT................................................................................................................................... IV STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY: ......................................................................................................................... VI LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................................................... XI LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................................................... XII 1 ............................................................................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................................................1 1.1 BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................................... 3 1.1.1 The ‘rural’ in rural film consumption .................................................................................... 4 1.1.2 About Narwal: The legacy, landscape and current challenges .................................................. 7 1.2 RESEARCH AIMS ................................................................................................................................... 17 1.3 METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................................... 18 1.3.1 Overview of the research procedure ....................................................................................... 19 1.3.2 Networks and interlocutors ..................................................................................................... 23 1.3.3 Staying with the residents ....................................................................................................... 23 1.3.4 Watching films at home and at the Industrial Training Institute ............................................ 24 1.3.5 Spending time at beauty parlours and tailor boutiques .......................................................... 26 1.3.6 Interactions in schools