Shakti-The Power of the Mother

The Violent Nurturer in Indian Mythologyand Commercial Cinema

By Jawahara K. Saidullah

L' article etablit un lien entre les re­ligions anciennes et les imagescinematographiques modernes del' educateur violent. La femmetraditionnelle hindoue est le symbolede l'energie et de la puissance al'etat pur, « Shakti » qui detruit lesmauvais esprits pour proteger sesproches et les eduque par le biais deses actes de violence. Cette femmephysiquement forte est reapparuedans les films commerciaux en Inderemplal;ant ainsi l'heroi"ne passive.animee d'un esprit de sacrifice. Lanouvellefemmefait ce que peutfairetout heros male. sinon mieux. Onl'appelle souvent la deesse « Kali »

qui venge toute injustice contre sapersonne, safamilie et sa collectivite.

I grew up in India, amidst giant cin­ema posters and street corners blar­ing popular film music. In the morn­ing, the temple bells clang and thepundits chant, as they worship thestatuesofthe female goddess mother: thedestroyerandrejuvenatorofthe universe. Even as devotees throng to the temples to worshipthe mother, cinema addicts queue up to box offices to watchcelluloid dreams unfold. This marriage of religion and fIlm is apalpable reality in India. Mythology and religion fonn strongthematic bases for Indian films. Even when the fIlms are notmythological as such, religious imagery often appears in them. Itis particularly interesting that the images of women portrayed inreligious texts are transferred to the cinema screen. Women areworshipped as powerful goddesses carved in stone while they arestereotyped as silent and self-sacrificing. Then a new womaninvaded the Indian screen. But was it a new image or a reinterpre­tation of the old? The violent nurturer, the mother goddess of theIndian screen is interesting, cathartic, and offers a sharp contrastto her predecessor.

VOLUME 13, NUMBER 1

Commercial Indian cinema

Indian fIlms descended from folktheatre, travelling troupes perfonn­ing religious and mythological playsin villages and towns. Naturalism inacting and staging was impossible.The voice had to be raised to beheard, the gesture grand to be seen.This style was transferred directly tofilm, where it was modified onlymarginally. Religious andmythologi­cal melodrama formed cinematicthemes. The most striking contribu­tion of folk theatre was in the fre­quent interpolation of songs anddances in Indian fIlms. (Das Gupta,1989) On July 7, 1896, a Times ofIndia advertisement invited Bombayresidents to witness "the marvel ofthe century, the wonderofthe world."This was the first fIlm show in India:the cinematography of the Lumierebrothers of France. Attracted to therevolutionary potential of this mass

medium, D.G. Phalkereleased the first Indian feature fIlm, RajahHarishchandra, in 1913. (Bamouw and Krishnaswamy ) In1931, Alam Ara. the first film with sound made by A.M. lrani,was released. Both these films used mythological melodrama tobecome popular.

India's commercial cinema developed under British colonial­ism, the only national cinema to do so. It emerged in its classicfonn as the "all talking, all singing, all dancing Bombay talkie."Cinema is one oflndia's ten largest industries. About two filmsare made every day. (Binford) Nine hundred odd films areproduced annually by this prolific industry. I refer specifically to"commercial" cinema as distinct from the "realistic" cinemawhich is often referred to as parallel, art, and new cinema. ArtfIlmmakers are linked by their rejection of commercial cinemavalues, themes, and stylistic approaches.

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Audiences for commercial Indian cin­ema do not complain if the plots are tooimprobable or too fantastic. Perhaps thatis what they pay for. a temporary escapeinto a fantasy world. far removed fromreality. Economist Tariq Ali (Das Guptaand Hoberman) says that these "escapistextravaganzas" are reminiscent of theHollywood musicals during the depres­sion. The difference is that in India. thereis an almost permanent depression. andthus an unending stream of such fIlms isproduced.

Das Gupta and Hoberman summarizedthe basic ingredients of a commercialIndian fIlm: dances and songs. cabaretsand car chases. rape and mother worship.fights and love scenes (inevitably playedin the copious lap ofnature), high pitchedmelodrama with outrageous finales. Thinstory lines and sturdy actors connect allthe dots. A typical advertisement for acommercial Indian fIlm reads. "A glossy.spectacular human drama with tantaliz­ing songs. nerve-splitting fights. superbsuspense and heartbreaking subtle senti­ments." (Binford)

Female representations

Mythology and religion have formedthe themes both directly and insidiouslyfor Indian films. Since religious andmythological themes have been trans­ported to the silver screen. traditional fe­male representations persist. The motherhas been venerated in Hindu tradition. In1928. Ghosha wrote that the essence ofwomanhood lies in motherhood. The tra­ditional Indo-Aryan attitude is that ofMaor mother. even for her husband. "Theidea of all encompassing motherhood asthe highest principle was fmnly acceptedin Vedic times. transmitted to all otherperiodsandhas throughoutall ages formedthe basis of the exceptional degree ofreverence paid to the mother." (Das)

Ancient Indian religion was strangelyliberal in its treatment of women. Onlylater. as civilization developed. did theManusmriti appear to crystallize the fateofIndian womanhood into subordination.Manu. the author of Manusmriti wrotedown edicts of behaviour for all classesand types of people. He was largely re­sponsible for the diminished social statusof women. "Manu's code...has had themost negative effects. forging unbreak-

able shackles on Indian women for count­less succeeding generations.... Manu forthe first time legally assigned to womanher defmite place in the scale of society."(Monier-Williams)

However. even Manu elevated the sta­tus of woman as mother. He wrote that ateacher "is ten times more venerable thana sub teacher. the father a hundred timesmore than the teacher. but the mother athousand times more than the father."(Das) Needless to say, a woman who isnot a mother is worthless. and the onlyway to gain societal status is to become amother. The biological mother is never­theless related to the great cosmic mother,the creator and rejuvenator of the uni­verse. as we shall read later.

For decades. commercial Indian cin­ema has prescribed the roles of the idealwoman as the self-sacrificing. all-forgiv-

For centuriespeople worshippedthe goddess Kali

in all her awesomepower while Indianwomen stood on thefringes of society.

ingmartyr. The 'cryingmother' and 'dewyeyed heroine' were common depictions(Das Gupta. 1985). The message forwoman in Indian films is that the pinnacleof her ambition is marriage. If she hasdifferent desires. ifshe deviates from it, itis seen as a betrayal of her biological andfunctional role and she pays for it inhumiliation and defeat. (Vasudeva andLanglet) Even if the heroine's husbandmistreats her or has extra-marital affairs.it is her duty to forgive him, for he is her'lord.' In fIlms like Pati Parmeshwar(Husband is God. 1988). Naseeb ApnaApna (Different Destinies. 1986). andDaasi (Female Slave. 1981). the martyredtraditional wife who wins her man fromthe 'bad'. modern. ambitious woman iscelebrated.

Rahman describes the traditional fe­male characters in Indian films as either"the simple village girl who was contentdancing around mustard fields with thepoetry spouting hero," or the "devotedcity woman who was willing to sacrificeeverything for her beloved." For centu­ries. women had been told that theirstrength lay in their quiet servitude. theirself sacrifice and their suffering. The im­age of a woman as a physically dominantbeing, violent and revengeful, was un­common. For centuries, people wor­shipped the goddess Kali in all her awe­some power. while Indian women stoodon the fringes of society.

The violent nurturer: the mothergoddess

India has recently generated a spate ofwoman-oriented fIlms with a violent. al­most bloodthirsty. avenging woman asthe central focus. Hers is not a senselessviolence: violencesurfaceswhen her lovedones are threatened. She is a ferociousnurturer who does not let anyone harmthose she loves. This woman is simply thereinterpretation of ancient goddess im­ages of women. The mother goddess isperceived as the creator of the universe.She is the primal energy that created theuniverse. Baig quotes a famous tantricprayer. "Only when I am conjoined withthee, 0 Shakti, have I the power to beabsolute Lord. otherwise God would noteven be able to move....'· Shakti meanspower, which is female energy in its pur­est form. The Hindus believed in the en­ergy of the female. Shakti exists to givepower to the male gods in the guise oftheir female consorts. However, her roleis enabling. not merely supportive.(Robinson) The numerous female con­sorts are manifested in the preeminentgoddess herself. "the Devi. as primaryembodiment ofshakti." Ancientpre-Ary­ans (2,000 RC. and before) also wor­shipped a female goddess. That is. "Lifecame from food. Food came from soil.man camefrom woman. woman gave life.It is not astonishing that God was awoman." (Baig)

All the independent. lower goddessesare fused into her persona. In her mostviolent form, she is Kali-the demonslayer. who rides a tiger. has eight arms.wears a necklace of skulls. and holds aloft

38 CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIES/LES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME

A. Ramachandran

the bloodied head ofa slain demon. In herbenevolent form, the goddess is Parvati,Uma, and Sati. When she becomes a de­stroyer and summons all her powers andthe violent forces ofnature, she is referredto by many names. Some of these areDurga, Bhavani, Bhairavi, Amba,Jagdamba, andChandi Mahatmya(Spratt).Whichever form she takes she is pureShakti (power).

Sprattdescribes the violent mothergod­dess further. She fights evil on behalf ofthe gods. She uses many weapons, includ­ing her teeth, while blood flows unceas­ingly. "Sheis alternately hideous andbeau­tiful, and alternately terrifying and lov­ing." She is again described as having a"hideous face, staring eyes, protrudingteeth and bloodstains, skulls, corpses,snakes, etc." Her worshippers offer bloodsacrifices. However, even in this form,she is loved. For her devotees, the mes­sage is clear: she kills and destroys toprotect them and to usher in a new andbetter world era. She is their mother whowants only good for her children and whois enraged when they are threatened.

Kali is not just a violent destroyer, sheis called KaliMa (Kali the mother). She isthe slayer of demons and her role is torestore the social order. For her worship­pers, her children, she is merciful andbountiful-a mother. She reserves herterrifying wrath for the powers of evil.Despite similarities with her husband,Shiva, it is interesting that she is reveredas mother, but he is not addressed asfather. Anotheranomaly is thatwhen Shivaperforms the dance ofdeath, tandavnritya, theworld comes to an endand is totally destroyed.Kali, however does notdestroy thewhole world;only evil is destroyed.Kali is a rejuvenatingforce, while Shiva ispurely destructive.

Some movies of themid to late 80s have beenbased on the Kali aspectof woman. Film direc­tor, Malhotra, notes that"people, includingwomen, don't want softcharacters; they don'twant to see women suf-

fer. Everybody now wants the heroine tobehave like Jhansi ki Rani on the screen."The last reference is to the young queen ofJhansi, one of the leaders of the Indianmutiny of 1857. She rode to battle againstthe British and was killed. Women, oncesymbols for peace and silent suffering onscreen, now portray images of destruc­tion. The new violent goddess revels indirect physical violence. In Pratighat, thefemale lead hacks the villain to death in apublic political meeting; her revenge ismore satisfying because of the extremeviolence. (Rahman).

The movies

Zakhmi Aurat (Wounded Woman)The heroine, Kiran, is a gutsy police

officer, impetuous andbrave. She is rapedby four men, but they are acquitted due toinsufficient evidence. Frustrated by thejudicial system, she organizes a group ofwomen as rape vigilantes. They lure theacquitted rapists, and a doctor in theirgroup castrates them. Kiran fmally con­fesses to her crimes and her fiance prom­ises to wait for her if she serves time. Thefilm leaves her in court; the verdict is notyet in. Presumably it is left to the audi­ence's discretion.Mera Shikaar (My Prey)

The central character is Bijli, a viva­cious, talkative village woman. She is thebreadwinnerofher family, which consistsof her father and two younger sisters.Unlike her sister who dreams ofmarriage,Bijli sees herselfas a hard-fighting female

Robin Hood, who beats up men. Her vil­lage is often raided by the bandit,Changeza. She antagonizes one of hisfollowers. To teachhera lesson, Changezarapes her younger sister on her weddingday (she commits suicide) and brutallymurders her brother-in-law. Bijli vows toavenge them and challenges him to afight. She destroys his hideout and killshim singlehandedly.Sherni (Lioness)

Durga is a young village woman whosefamily is massacred and she herself isnearly raped by the village landlord. Shemanages to escape to herfather. Her fami­ly's last moments haunt her, and she leadsa band of bandits to avenge them and ridher village of the landlord's dominance.Khoon Baha Ganga Mein (Blood flowsinto the Ganges)

Ganga is the central character of thisfIlm. Her mother is raped and killed, andher father murdered by the village land­lord. She is chased, but is rescued by agang of bandits. She grows up to becomethe leader of the gang. Her childhoodsweetheart (also the landlord's son) is apoliceman on her trail. She takes revengeon her enemies. In the end, she and herlover are both killed.Kahani Phoolvati Ki (The Story ofPhoolvati)

This is the largely fictionalized versionof a female bandit who terrorized villag­ers in the early 80s. Phoolan was a poorwoman ofa low caste. She was rejectedbyher much older husband. On her return toher parents' village, she was gang-raped

by some menofa high caste.She ran away to the ravinesof Chambal, a commonhideout for bandits. Thereshe led a group ofbandits tocommit mass murders ofmen of the same caste whohad raped her. In 1983, shesurrenderedto thepoliceandis currently in prison.Bhrashtachar (Corrup­tion)

The heroine, Bhavani, isa fiery journalistand femaleactivist She works againsta powerful politician, whois very corrupt but has anexcellent public image. Hehad raped and murdered a

VOLUME 13, NUMBER 1 39

blind girl she had rescued from a brothel,and Bhavani later discovers the politicianhad murdered her own father. He framesher for a murder when she writes againsthim, and uses his influence with thepoliceand the judiciary to get her a death sen­tence. However, she is rescued by herboyfriend. Both go underground and sur­face while the politician is making a directtelevised broadcast to his electorate. Theybeat him up on camera, and make himconfess to his varied crimes of murder,rape, corruption, flesh trade, etc. The fIlmends with a message that it is up to thepeople to pay the price for democracy andfreedom by being vigilant.

Common themes

Gentle and nurturing: In most of thesefIlms the female is a mother, central to the

Kali is notjust aviolent destroyer.

Her role is torestore thesocial order.She reserves

her wrath for thepowers ofevil.

story. She is not necessarily a biologicalmother, but usually her younger siblingsare virtually her children, and she is theprimary bread-winner and care-taker ofher family. Her parents, if alive, are oldand/or feeble. She isextremely protectiveof their welfare. She protects not only herfamily but also her village. She protectsother women from exploitation. In allthese fIlms, the women take on traditionalmale roles in India, as well as those per­petuated in usual Indian fIlm fare.

A better world: Though the initial mo­tivation is a personal vendetta, the heroineultimately works for the larger good.

Rape: All the fIlms deal with rape,whether it be the rape (attempted or ac­tual) of the heroine or her loved ones. Itspurs the central female character toward

purposeful revenge and is a driving forcein their lives. If a rape is the angry andviolent domination ofa woman by a manormen, thewoman'srevengealmostmim­ics its violence and anger, but without thesexual connotations. This supports thecontention that rape is an act of violenceand anger. What these militant womencarry with them to spur them to violenceis the pain, anger, humiliation, frustra­tion, and helplessness of the primal act ofrape. All the women are plagued by night­marish visions ofthe rape (theirs or some­one else's) and are obsessed with theseimages. In the final showdown, they tauntthe rapist and remind him of their ownhelplessness when he begs for mercy.

Socio-economicstatus: Exceptfor !Gran(Zakhmi Aural) and Bhavani(Bhrashtachar), the female leads in thesemovies are of a low socio-economic sta­tus. In the fITst part of the films, thewomen arehumbleandobsequious. Whenconfronted with evil, they beg for mercy,and cry. Their poverty targets them forabuse at the hands of the rich who areusually the villains. In villages, the richvillain is usually personified by the vil­lage landlord. He is the major landholderand traditionally the villagers are hisbonded laborers. The landlords are por­trayed as debauched, corrupt, lustful, con­niving, and greedy. In the city, the villainis rich and is often a powerful politician.His power is undisputed and he com­mands the corrupt administrative, judi­cial, and police machinery to persecutethe heroine.

Death: This theme is not seen in ZakhmiAural. In theotherfIlms, the violentdeathsof loved ones adds fITe to the quest forrevenge. Orphaned and totally alone, theheroine becomes an outlaw and takes uparms. This is the traditional, eternallypopular image of the 'desperado' . It is, ofcourse, unusual that the central characteris female. She is fully aware of her situa­tion. She knows she cannot return to soci­ety. Her vengeance is the only reality inher life. When she kills, she becomescoldeyed, ruthless, and blood-thirsty.

A departure from tradition

All these female characters are, ofcourse, diametrically opposed to the tra­ditional perfect wife or perfect mother,who have been epitomized as the ideal,

and in fact, as the only female images. Thetraditional Hindi film heroine touts herstrengths as her capacity for love, self­sacrifice, submissiveness, and her abilityto forgive (usually her errant husband).The woman worships her husband as agod and would not divorce him even ifheabused herandkeptmistresses. She wouldshow her strength by worshipping himstill, and servinghim. Eventually he mendshis ways, and she welcomes him back.

In traditional films, the woman is re­vered and referred to as the house goddessof wealth and prosperity. Conversely, ifmisfortune strikes her home, she isblamedfor it The traditional 'strong woman' isone who can withstand every ill-treat­ment and misfortune, uncomplaining andready to forgive and forget.

The new physically violent womanrebels against injustice, ill-treatment, andcruelty. For her, to be passive in misfor­tune is tobe weak; for her predecessor thatwas strength. The new heroines are re­ferred to as the incarnation or personifica­tion ofDurga and Kali. The reference is tothe goddess ridding the earth of all evil.

Other common references are to dan­gerous and, ferocious animals. In Sherni,Durga's father appoints her leader of hisbandits on his death. He says,"I am proudthat I am not leaving behind a weak:,helpless woman; but among my trustyfollowers I leave behind a lioness." Thelioness kills anyone who threatens herloved ones. Another common analogy isthe comparison of the heroine to a she­cobra. Cobras mate for life. If the cobra iskilled, his mate goes to any lengths toavenge his death.

In folklore and common culture,unbound hair also has a particular signifi­cance. When the goddess Kali possessesaperson (usually a woman), her hair es­capes the confmes ofa braid as she dancesin a frenzy. Women are often advised notto visit a Kali temple with unbound hair inorder to avoid possession. In all the films,the women wear braids. When they em­bark on their mission, their hair is alwaysunbound. One interpretation ofthis wouldbe that they are freed from the conven­tions imposed on women to braid theirhair. By taking up weapons, they break:the traditional mould. Another interpreta­tion would be that they are possessed bythe goddess Kali. When Kali goes intobattle, her hair is always unbound.

40 CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIES/LES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME

The central characters are all conspicu­ous by the similarity of their attire aftertheir transformation into warriors. In ad­dition to unbound hair, they dress in black,usually leather and ride a white horse.Kali is usually shown as a dark-skinneddeity, dressed in dark and somber colors.Perhaps the attire was derived from thatsource. The white horse could be a west­ern derivative. From Phantom to Zorro tothe LoneRanger, the white horse seems torepresent a crusader for justice in westernlegend.

The males in these films have changeddramatically from their traditional coun­terparts. They do not tell the woman tobehave like a 'virtuous woman', as theirpredecessors would have done. They donot trivialize the woman's revenge or herfeelings in any way. The man-womanrelationship has changed in these films.The woman's mission is paramount in herlife, and not even her love alters that. Theymeet on equal terms. He is no longer herprotector, because she can do that herself.In older films-and some contemporaryones-the hero would beat up the badguys while the heroine would stand andlook on proudly, as 'her man' provedhimself to her. In all the films I reviewed,men stand around while the female pro­tagonist indulges in physical violence.The women are not presented as extraor­dinary beings. Despite the references tothe goddess Durga, the women are por­trayedas common people, who snap whenthey are persecuted. In this, they are morehuman than their traditional counterparts,whose patience and pain thresholdsseemed too high to be true.

A Short Critique

Clearly this genre ofmovies has brokenthe traditional submissive, self-sacrific­ing, and placid mould. However, it is clearthat these new images are also stereotypi­cal. Despite their cathartic value for sup­pressed women and their entertainmentvalue, it is doubtful that these movies willchange popular perceptions of women. Itis clear that these women are a new type ofideal, as much as their self-sacrificing,submissive predecessors were. That as­pect alone ensures that they are not realwomen. They are goddesses incarnate,ideal and worshippable, but so far re­moved from the flesh and blood woman,

VOLUME 13, NUMBER 1

as to diminish the latter's status further.Even though they are more real in theiremotional reactions to persecution thantheir silent suffering predecessors, theyare far removed from most women.

Usually the women in these fIlms areplayed by actresses who have a certainbox-office draw. Clearly, the decision tomake these fIlms was determined by fi­nances. They are formulaic films whichensure that ''Thecash registers do not stopringing." (Rahman) These fIlms havebeenmonetary successes, which is not surpris­ing because fantasy and escapism rule theIndian film scene. However, it is hearten­ing that the strong woman genre has notflopped. One prominent film actress,Rekha, applauds this genre, "Times havechanged, thank God...For the first timethe heroine has emergedas a strong, toughwoman willing to fight back, reflectingthe Indian woman of today."

It is obvious that the solutions offeredin these films are unrealistic and imprac­tical. Yet there is a definite reference tothe society. These fIlms highlight the lackof law and order, and the corruption inIndia today. The violenceprovides a wish­ful, almost vicarious solution to prob­lems. This may explain the success ofthese films. The weak groups of society,the poor and the low castes feel empow­ered along with the militant woman onscreen, herselfa memberofa weak societalorder as a female.

It is ironic that the land that worshipsstrong mother images and cheers theirprototypes on screen should bum womenfor dowry, and debase them in countlessother ways. Perhaps, however, the break­ing ofthe traditional mould on screen mayherald the development of more complexfemale characters in Indian films. Cer­tainly one message emerges. Do not takewoman for granted: there is only so muchshe will endure.

Jawahara Saidullah has a BA. in Eco­nomics and Political Science from anIndian university. She hasjust completedan MA. in Communications at the Uni­versity of Kentucky where her areas ofinterest were Intercultural Studies andWomen's Studies. She is active in both thewomen's movement and the environmen­tal movement. This article is derivedfroma paper that was originally presented atthe Associationfor the Education ofJour-

nalism and Mass Communication in Bos­ton,1991.

References

Baig, T.A. India's Woman Power. NewDelhi: S. Chand Co., 1976.

Barnouw, E. and Krishnaswamy, S. In­dian Film. New York: Oxford Univer­sity Press, 1980.

Binford, M.R. The Two Cinemas ofIndia:Film and Politics in the Third World.Brooklyn, New York: Autonomedia,Media, Inc., 1987.

Das, EM. Purdah, The Status ofIndianWomen. New York: Vanguard Press,Inc., 1932.

Das Gupta, C. "Indian Cinema: Dynam­ics of Old and New." India 2000: TheNext Fifteen Years. J.R. Roach Ed.Delhi, India: The Riverdale Co. Inc.,1985.

-. "Seeing and Believing, Science andMythology." Film Quarterly Journal.(Summer 1989): pp 12-8.

-. & Hoberman, J. "Pols ofIndia." FilmQuarterly Journal (May-June 1987):pp 20-23.

Ghosha,J.Hindu Women ofIndia. Delhi:Bimla Publishing House, 1928.

Monier-Williams, Sir. Brahmanism andHinduism; or, the Religious Thought inIndia. London: Murray, 1887.

Rahman, M. "Women strike back." IndiaToday. 15 July 1988. pp 80-82.

Robinson, S.P. "Hindu Paradigms ofWomen: Images and Values." Women,Religion andSocial Change. New York:State University of New York Press,1985.

Spratt,P. Hindu Culture andPersonality;A Psychoanalytic Study. Bombay, In­dia: Manaktalas, 1966.

Vasudeva, A. & Langlet, P. Indian Cin­ema Superbazar. Delhi, India:Vasudeva, 1983.

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