...Maa ka suffer
In Indian cinema, motherhood has been a key theme portraying a mother’s sacrifice, selflessness and her love for the child beyond all the limits. The stereotypical portrayal of motherhood in Indian cinema has served an idea of obvious responsibilities and sacrifices. As times changed, cinema began to come up with more realistic shades of motherhood. The intensity of embracing motherhood has changed various narratives. It began to show the wants and needs of a mother as an individual. Some of the examples of modern motherhood from current generation include English Vinglish (Gauri Shinde), Secret Superstar (Advait Chandan), Tumhari Sulu (Suresh Triveni), Mimi (Laxman Utekar), Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (Karan Johar), etc. Undoubtedly the mothers in these films raise their voice and take a stand for themselves, but this is carefully portrayed without damaging or wounding the perception of motherhood. Portrayal of motherhood in Anurag Kashyap’s films stark a difference in a layered aspect.
There are many factors and situations that make people take their decisions in a certain way. It is the same with characters in films. The background and understanding of each character is the driving force of the decisions they make and the actions they take. Let us begin with the abortion in case of Simmy (Sobhita Dhulipala). Post intercourse between Simmy and Raghav (Vicky Kaushal), she too questions him about not using protection. She is ready for the responsibilities required to be taken for embracing motherhood. Her act of asking him for marriage clarifies her wish to have a family. She is boldly fearless as well as tender and caring. The incident when her maid is murdered, she is seen to be caressing her maid’s baby in a tender way. Her expressions convey a sense of grief and concern.
On the other hand, safety concerns for the son are conveyed by Lakshmi (Amruta Subhash). The very entry of Lakshmi marks this emotion. When Raman (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) abruptly shows up at her doorstep, before having any conversation with Raman, she makes her son enter the house to save him from any harm.
The protective and concerned acts are well portrayed by Sunaina’s (Zoya Hussain) mother. They seem to have conversations like best friends. Sunaina’s mother is seen taking a stand for her in all situations. She is not a silent observer. Mukkabaaz is surely a testosterone driven film and the crude patriarchal norms has set its narrative. Despite this, Mrs. Mishra’s concern for Sunaina is witnessed when she questions her husband (Sunaina’s father) about his silence towards Bhagwan Das Mishra’s oppression.
Meera: Beti paida karne se pehle mujhse puch lete na? Toh aaj hum ye sab nahi suna rahe hote. Sab kuch toh usi ke marji ka chalta hai…khaate usi ke marji se, pite usi ke marji se, sote usi ke marji se. Ek baar kya hum apni marji nahi chala sakte? Acha bataiye kitne bacche hain hamare? Ek he toh beti hai. Aur aap ke paas bhi ek he mauka hai ye saabit karne ka ki aap he uske baap ho.
Later Sunaina and her parents were abducted in the outskirts by Bhagwan Das Mishra. Sunaina’s mother held a pivotal role in freeing her from his clutches. If looked closely, in Uttar Pradesh, women are mostly seen behind their ‘ghoonghat’. In such a backdrop, Mrs. Mishra manages to courageously break free from the suffocating surveillance of the goons. This seems possible due to her protectiveness that emerged from motherhood only.
Ugly, the name itself reflects this film. The chaotic opening scene of Ugly starts with Shalini (Tejaswini Kolhapure) sitting alone surrounded by alcohol and medicines. Further visuals convey a shot which shows an attempted suicide. After this she again attempts to kill herself by putting a gun in her mouth. She is about to pull the trigger and the doorbell rings. It’s her daughter behind the door. Her act of attempting suicide comes as a shocker when it is revealed that she has a daughter. This one scene establishes how motherhood will be seen further in the narrative.
Sarita in Choked is a character who does not have any emotional angle towards any relation in her life. She plays her role and performs her tasks as a mother, wife and cashier merely as her duty. Throughout the film it is seen that the numbness has come as an effect of her past trauma. This shows her emotionally cold approach towards each relation, including motherhood.
While navigating through Gulaal, Ugly, Mukkabaaz, Raman Raghav 2.0 and Choked, it is witnessed that we can see all possible shades of motherhood in Anurag Kashyap’s films.
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