Representation of Gender and Female Sexuality
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Review Article l M ba ed o i l a G Global Media Journal 2021 J ournal Vol.19 No.41:252 The Global Network of ISSN 1550-7521 Representation of Gender and Female Grishma Trivedi* Sexuality: An Analysis of Selected Department of Literature and Culture, st The Maharaja Sayajirao University of ‘Controversial’ Hindi Films of the 21 century Baroda, Gujarat, India Abstract *Corresponding author: Grishma Trivedi India is one of the world’s largest film-producing and film-viewing nations. Yet, very little focus has been placed on the subject on the female gender and their sexuality. This research paper focuses on films like Deepa Mehta’s Fire (1996), [email protected] Shonali Bose’s Margarita With a Straw (2015), Leena Yadav’s Parched (2016), Alankrita Shrivastava’s Lipstick Under my Burkha (2017) dealing with the ‘taboo’ cis-female sexuality. These films received immense criticism and backlash for Department of Literature and Culture, The choosing to subvert the gaze and focusing on controversial things like masturbation, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, homo-sexual love and sexuality in ‘differently-abled’, hetrosexual sex workers, the Gujarat, India meaning of a woman’s sexual consent and sex beyond the constraints of marriage. These films reflect the Indian woman’s unrestrained exploration of her sexuality along with the intersections of Class, Gender and Patriarchy. The reason for taking Citation: Trivedi G (2021) Representation of these films is their unflinching approach of putting female sexual desire at their Gender and Female Sexuality: An Analysis of forefront and allows their female protagonists to breathe as independent sexual Selected ‘Controversial’ Hindi Films of the creatures. The researcher also tries to show how the nuancing patriarchy or the 21st century. Global Media Journal, 19:41. hetero-patriarchy couldn’t ‘veil’ these 'women' characters. The paper aims at starting a dialogue about the subject, to push the existing boundaries and think beyond the prescribed ‘norm’. Keywords: Bollywood; Sexuality; Parched; Fire; Burkha; Banned films Received: May 20, 2021; Accepted: June 03, 2021; Published: June 10, 2021 Introduction character under scrutiny and an eventual categorization into the virgin-whore paradigm. Female Sexuality is ‘veiled’ for the audience of the world’s largest film-producing and film-viewing nation, India. Women have often been stereotyped. They are seen as objects of desire rather than the ones having desires. The patriarchal Women in India are conditioned into what is ‘accepted’ and framework points out the dynamics of power where the man is what is ‘unaccepted’ in the society. A child growing up within the provider and the woman is the receiver. This power play is also the patriarchal society is often hushed by the parents as sex and prevalent in a typical heterosexual couple’s sexual activities. So a sexuality remain something which isn’t openly talked about in man, who has grown up in an extensively patriarchal conditioning, front of families. It is something which is to be ‘discovered behind would always want to be the dominating sexual partner among closed doors’. Also, women are seen as domestic creatures. the two. His desires and dominance would overshadow that of the They are seen as someone who isn’t allowed to step beyond the woman’s. Also, for a patriarchal society to thrive, it is important ‘Laxman-Rekha’ of their houses. This domestification of women to keep the subject-object status of a man and woman in place. leads to the idea that the existence of a woman’s identity is in “A woman blurs out her status as a docile object the moment reference to a man, and that man can be any member of the she expresses desire and so, the society does everything in its family. Basically, a woman’s identity is either being a daughter, might to curb it; often taking the disguise of religious or moral a sister, a wife or a mother. That results in the loss of identity ideologies.” (Gupta).Women’s problems are aggravated when it or existence of that gender, here, the female gender. Therefore, encompass not only gender and economic deprivation but also the concept of sex as a means of pleasure for women is quite discrimination associated with religion, caste, and untouchability, ‘unaccepted’ and ‘non-existent’ as the existence of a woman is which in turn results in the denial of their social, economic, itself muted or blurred and when a woman decides to unmute cultural, and political rights. They become vulnerable to sexual herself and express her sexual desires; it brings her ‘moral’ violence and exploitation due to their gender and caste. Women © Under License of Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License | This article is available in: http://www.globalmediajournal.com 1 ARCHIVOSGlobal Media DE MEDICINA Journal 2021 ISSNISSN 1550-7521 1698-9465 Vol.19 No.41:252 also become victims of abhorrent social and religious practices stir also resulting in a lot of protests and the film said to be against such as devadasi/jogini (temple prostitution), resulting in sexual the ‘Indian Culture’. Quoting the Chief Minister Manohar Joshi, exploitation in the name of religion. “The film's theme is alien to our culture”. With sex being a male bastion in India, in Bollywood particularly, In December 1998, a small group of protesters halted the screening women are often objectified in item numbers, and sex is of Fire in two Mumbai theatres. The following day a similar group portrayed either in a crass manner (Mastizaade, Grand Masti to attacked a theatre in New Delhi where Fire was being viewed. In name a few) or an overtly erotic way (Raaz, Jism to name a few). both cities, the protesters were primarily women affiliated with Very little focus has been placed on the subject of women and the Shiv Sena. They also held that the movie’s storyline would their sexuality and the few films that have dared to explore the spoil Indian women and would lead to the collapse of marriage as subject of female sexuality and independence in a serious, non- an institution. According to the reports, the protestors who hadn’t conventional manner, have, naturally, caused quite a stir from the even seen the movie, thought it was an attack to the culture of general public and the Censor Board. India and thus, necessary to be fought against. There are films like Deepa Mehta’s Fire [1], Shonali Bose’s If anything, the broader issue of freedom of expression and Margarita With a Straw [2], Leena Yadavs’s Parched [3] and tolerance had got derailed by the lesbian debate. As a surprised Alankrita Shrivastava’s Lipstick Under my Burkha [4] dealing with Mehta said, "I can't have my film hijacked by any one organization. the taboo of female sexuality, also the subject of the research. It is not about lesbianism. It's about loneliness, about choices". The reason for taking these films is their unflinching approach of The protests emerge from the fact that control over female putting female sexual desire at their forefront and allows their sexuality constitutes the central concern of many of these issues female protagonists to breathe as independent sexual creatures. although associating patriarchy as a measure to justify the film From conversations on masturbation, celebrating lesbian love, the and its theme could effectively pitch in the presupposition that passions of female sex-workers, the meaning of a woman’s sexual women’s oppression is solely and directly related to the denial of consent to enjoying sex beyond the constraints of marriage, choice in her sexuality. these films reflect the Indian woman’s unrestrained exploration of her sexuality along with the intersections of Class, Gender and Margarita with a Straw Patriarchy. An independent woman with cerebral palsy who chooses to embrace her sexuality and seeks for an identity of her own is Why these Movies were Termed already enough threat to the ‘Moral’ guidelines which the Censor ‘Controversial’ Board of India follows for making the cuts in a movie. Reportedly the Film Certification Board had asked the makers of the film to When it is said that films are a mirror to the society, why when it’s edit certain scenes some of which include a 12 seconds long kiss to be showcased to the audience, becomes ‘controversial’? between the lead characters, a scene where Kalki is seen showing So, what exactly is ‘controversial’ and why were these films her middle finger and a scene where Kalki has been helped to banned initially before release? According to the researcher, they remove her undergarments and she is shown peeing. Also, the challenged the set ‘standards’ of the ‘patriarchal’ society or went court of Bangalore had banned the film from screening as the against those ‘standards’ or well, set some new ‘standards’ and authorities expressed their disapproval over the content of the above all, were not ‘culturally relevant’. movie. Laila watches porn, uses a friend to assuage her frustration Now, what are these ‘standards’? As we know, India is a and even has sex with a woman. Exploring a woman’s sexuality in patriarchal society and those ‘standards’ come from the roots of an Indian film is taboo and thus makes this film controversial. our culture, where male-domination is a norm. However, as time has progressed, India is moving away from the male dominated Parched culture but discrimination is still highly visible in rural as well as A film which was judged by the leaked lovemaking scene before in urban areas, throughout all strata of society. While women are the release of the movie. The actors had to come out and talk guaranteed equality under the constitution, legal protection has a about how the film was much more than the nude scenes and limited effect, where patriarchal traditions prevail.