Who Thug Life leaves out; who Sitaare Zameen Par brings in.
The Men Stray, The Women Stay: How Mani Ratnam's Films Frame Infidelity | Be it Iruvar or Thug Life , infidelity is explored with complexity in Ratnam's oeuvre. But what about the women left behind? asks Neelima Menon . | ON THE SURFACE, it appears to be a classic Mani Ratnam infidelity triangle — a man torn between his traditional, long-suffering wife and a younger, glamorous lover. But the narrative typically layers it with an uneasy power dynamic and a frustrating lack of narrative accountability. The first real glimpse into the relationship between Indrani ( Trisha ) and the ageing gangster Rangaraya Shaktivel ( Kamal Haasan ) unfolds during a prison visit. The moment is subdued, but it quietly exposes the emotional tone of their bond. Indrani, once trafficked and rescued from a brothel by Shaktivel, has a kind of reverent loyalty that has long since evolved into love. Of course, the power imbalance is unmistakable, but typical of Mani Ratnam, it is never quite addressed. The film also avoids exploring the emotional legitimacy of their affair in greater depth. | The Shaktivel-Indrani affair, though conducted in private, remains an open secret and wound for his wife, Jeeva ( Abhirami ). She exists in a perpetual state of resigned fury, her disapproval manifesting in sharp glances and biting repartees. Given the apparent length of the affair (hints of having spanned several years), it has to be assumed that it isn’t a new battle for Jeeva. And yet, despite likely confrontations in the past and Jeeva’s palpable indignation, Shaktivel never discontinues his relationship with Indrani. It can also be that Jeeva tolerates his infidelity after having reached a point of emotional exhaustion. ALSO READ | Thug Life Is A Strange & Lifeless Film From Mani Ratnam What’s even more absurd (and cruel) is how Shaktivel likens his extramarital relationship to a medical condition— “like BP or diabetes”—as though it were a chronic affliction he must live with. This sort of glibness is typical of Ratnam’s male protagonists, who often intellectualize or joke about their emotional betrayals, while their wives are left to bear the weight of it. The dynamic between Shaktivel and Jeeva, thus, unfolds with the man playfully professing his love for her in the same breath that he dismisses her pain. The emotional labour of the marriage, unsurprisingly, remains hers to shoulder. | | | What Sitaare Zameen Par Gets Right About On-Screen Representation | The Aamir Khan film nudges Hindi cinema towards a more inclusive portrayal of caste, religion and disability — without tokenism, writes Lagan Mangla . | THE RECENT AAMIR KHAN -STARRER Sitaare Zameen Par has received a positive response from both audiences and critics ever since its release, which has also helped turn around the dry spell the actor has been experiencing at the box office. However, the release of the film, directed by RS Prasanna, was not entirely smooth sailing, as the CBFC refused to certify the film without some specific changes, including the addition of a disclaimer quotation by PM Narendra Modi at the start of the film, to secure a UA certification. Sitaare Zameen Par is an official remake of the 2018 Spanish-language film Champions , which tells the story of a suspended basketball coach sentenced to community service by helping a team of players with intellectual disabilities as they prepare for a tournament. The well-intentioned film uses humour at will to strive for a kinder, accepting and more inclusive world for persons with disabilities, challenging various stigmas. The cast which makes up the basketball team are actually individuals with intellectual disabilities, which was not the case for its spiritual predecessor Taare Zameen Par (2007). Beyond this choice, the film also makes creative choices which allow for a visible presence of characters from non-dominant castes as well as representing minority religions. | An overwhelming criticism of the Hindi film industry has come from a section which has argued that Hindi films showcase a homogenised worldview, representing stories of only the upper-caste Hindu imagination. It has been argued that other subcultures of India have been co-opted by this broad cultural production reflected in wedding practices, celebration of festivals and even food practices as seen on the silver screen. A research study ‘Lights, Camera and Time for Action: Recasting a Gender Equality Compliant Hindi Cinema’ (2023) by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences found that of the 25 highest-grossing Hindi films from 2019, 79 percent of the characters were shown to be following the Hindu religion, whereas about 92 percent of the characters in these films were depicted as belonging to dominant castes. | | | The one newsletter you need to decide what to watch on any given day. Our editors pick a show, movie, or theme for you from everything that’s streaming on OTT. | | This weekly newsletter compiles a list of the latest (and most important) reviews from OTTplay so you can figure what to watch or ditch over the weekend ahead. | | In which we invite a scholar of cinema, devotee of the moving image, to write a prose poem dedicated to their poison of choice. Expect to spend an
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