Page 31 - Here and Now – Apr 2024

The second woman, who makes a conscious yet an intelligent decision, forges her own way of
making the best use of her resources and creating awareness among the family members - the
women in particular.

The facilitator of this process - from not knowing to awareness and self-belief - is the woman
who has a stall in the railway platform. I loved her character. She brings in sensitivity, she
challenges the young woman Phool, she brings in humor, seriousness. She is a strong woman
who has a clear sense of herself. She says that she is not dependent on a man since she can take
care of herself. What I also saw in in this self-assured woman is quite refreshing. She doesn’t
preach to the woman. Rather, she confronts her in a way that instills hope and confidence.

The second woman uses her resources intelligently. She is aware of her surroundings and takes
calculated risks. This is what we have observed in our process work. One who take risks is more

likely to reap rewards. She is the one who uses head and heart in a very nuanced manner and I
felt like applauding her for it. She is authentic and assertive, is projected as a woman who is not
willing to cow down to conventional norms of marrying at a certain age. She questions the
dowry system and is willing to work for the family. She is one of the main resources of the entire
process. She thinks about and is sensitive to her own needs, while also making her marital
family aware of many aspects that hitherto they have been unaware of or not wanted to see,
blinded by a patriarchal mindset.

Gender roles in this film are portrayed in a very subtle-manner. Like the woman not wanting to
spell out her man’s name since it is a norm (which is broken by the other woman); what a

woman should be wearing, the expectation that a woman curtains her own thinking and
brilliance versus role expectations as a woman.

I must mention the role of the man in khakhi who romanticizes corruption and does it in an
intelligent manner; but stalks an intelligent woman and thinks she is cunning and fooling others.
This is also stereotyping a woman. Our assumption about this man’s role also undergoes a deep
shift just like his behaviour and his attitude. This is fun and is beautiful to watch. He becomes
more sensitive. The process reminded me once again of a lab where each person who
undergoes an experience and willing to learn, be open, experiment, take risks changes. In this

case it is a transformation!

In the end the first woman (the bride) embarks a journey on her own – she was earlier afraid of
the unknown and always veiled. Later, she doesn’t see the need to cover her head and face. Her
face is radiant with smiles as the fresh breeze kisses her cheeks. And at the end, she does call
her husband by name, breaking a tradition of taboos for women! It reminded me of how I felt

pg. 30