Vidya Balan is back with the hard-hitting and fiery Begum Jaan. And though she doesn’t like remakes, she took up the character because of its contemporary resonance. Just before the screening, she talks to Rinku Ghosh about the psychology behind body-shaming, the attitudinal change among women in society and the film industry’s own reaction to it. Excerpts
Did you have anything to do with the film’s tagline, “My body, my house, my country, my rulesIJ” It has a strong contemporary relevance.
We arrived at the punchline only after the film was made and feel it is very evocative, particularly for every woman. The body is a metaphor for the core of womanhood, so there is no reason for me to feel bad about my being just because some externalities are being used to define me.
As a woman, I have the first right to my body, mind and soul and I cannot be told anymore what and how I should do things. I know what has to be done with my body, to whom I should share it with, how I take care of it.....it is my decision. Though we have contextualised the line in the film, it basically is a cry against any sort of shaming or victimisation....it is my body, my rules, my soul.
Is this a conscious statement against the restrictive milieu concerning women today, the fatwas and diktats about what should be and not beIJ
It is definitely a powerful statement. I have a theory about the contemporary revisionism vis-a-vis women. With more and more of us coming into their own in all respects, be it socially, economically, politically or culturally, there is a new-found confidence which is challenging the male status quo like never before. I am still talking about the five per cent of the empowered and enabled women....the remaining 95 per cent is yet to have that awakening, realisation or awareness. And it is because we are threatening the so-called power structure that its protectors are flailing their arms. And the easiest way to control women is by their bodies, by body-shaming them. So willy nilly we are forced to think there is something to be ashamed about, that there is something dirty in us. So many times, for example, victims of molestation choose to speak out much after the horrid episode. I hear most people wonder why the affected girls take time to report a violation of their dignity and if indeed there isn’t an ulterior motive attached to their preliminary silence. Do people realise that women who are dealing with the flagrant violation of their bodies are constantly thinking if it was their own fault in projecting themselves, that the primary emotion is one of guilt before the hurt or the hitbackIJ I have seen some of the most confident women stunned and paralysed momentarily.
Women have always been made to feel guilty. Did I do something wrong is a question that continuously plays on in our minds. You keep asking yourself if your cleavage was interpreted as flaunting your availability or if that was the reason why a man pinched your back or was it your laughing out too loud. There was this lovely thing I read a while ago. A mini skirt asks a burqa, was it my faultIJ No it happened to me as well, answers the latter. I believe because societal honour and dishonour is defined through women, men find it very easy to abuse mothers, daughters and sisters. When you confront a man’s testosterone-driven ego, this is the easiest way out. Why do you think all the crassest vernacular abuses have everything to do with a mother or sisterIJ Because they immediately put you on the defensive and men know women are put in a very precarious position. The character of Begum Jaan is an embodiment of a collective fight against this ethos.
So are you saying that there is a sort of pronounced male hitbackIJ
I think it goes back to the very primitive need to know who the father of the child is. The fact that a woman doesn’t need the man anymore even in that respect (you have sperm banks) and that she is too independent make for a new paradigm that the ordinary man has a tough time dealing with. Men and women are supposed to complement each other in a relationship. The concept of do jism ek jaan after marriage becomes a man’s jism and his jaan while the woman becomes invisible. So I think the associated complexities in gender relationships is like a ball of thread. The more you open it, the more the problems arise.
How did you reinterpret the character of Begum Jaan considering that the Bengali originalRajkahini has done well both in the regional space and in pan-India multiplexesIJ
More than me, Srijit reinterpreted this character for a larger audience. It is very interesting as it presents a man’s empathetic perspective on a group of marginalised women (sex workers are the last rung on the social ladder) caught in the crossfire of Partition, which again was a boundary drawn by the men of the prevailing establishment. So these women fighters or survivors or whatever it is you want to call them, stand up for their rights on their terms. So the Partition is only a backdrop. The film has a micro perspective where it goes into the lives of these women and their own stories. It is humane and that’s what I went ahead with.
Since you are such an intelligent actor and do your preps so well, how did you black out the known reference point, considering you had even watched Rajkahini before green-lighting this projectIJ
I watched it because Srijit told me he didn’t have a ready script though he had thought of making a bilingual with me in the Hindi version for a long time. So I actually watched the film to decide whether I wanted to do it or not and, of course, it touched and moved me. Since I do not go into mannerisms and the intricate details of a character — unless I have to change diction, dialect, ride a horse or hold a gun — I go by the story and place myself in it. I found the story particularly irresistible. I found that the character was calling out to me. I wanted to execute that kind of power and attitude, one that says, “I don’t need a shoulder to lean on.”
Did you by any chance read Manto or Chughtai or was unconsciously thinking about Shyam Benegal’s Mandi, all of which have talked about dispossessed and displaced womenIJ
No I didn’t. I was aware of Manto and Chughtai and knew that the name Begum Jaan came from Chughtai’s lihaaf, who is left desolate and seeks comfort in another woman. Srijit is deeply influenced by Chughtai.
Women have been the worst victims of the sub-continent’s biggest migration and displacement. Women are a marginalised group in society and sex workers further marginalised. The filmmaker is telling this story from their point of view. History is usually seen from the perspective of the history-makers and the series of events they impact. But here you are actually seeing history from a neglected part of society, which doesn’t matter. Yet these disfranchised women have the guts and are standing up for change. You least expect them to stand up and say I don’t and won’t accept impositions. How powerful is thatIJ
I have watched Mandi and people draw parallel’s because a brothel and its keeper are involved. Begum Jaan and Shabanaji’s characters are not similar. Shabanaji’s character is more ready to go with the flow and adjust to change. Begum Jaan fights with every cell in her body and if destruction is inevitable, then she would preside over it herself too. On her terms.
This is your first film with Srijit. How did this connection happenIJ
I was familiar with his work but we got talking when I was asked to present him an award for film music. I went back to Mumbai and the next thing I know is that he had texted me saying he wanted to work with me. But at that time I was on a break. I told him I had to focus on my health as it would be pointless otherwise. He wanted to make Rajkahini with Rituparna Sengupta in Bengali and me in Hindi. He went ahead and made the Bengali version. Then I got a call from Bhattsahab (Mahesh Bhatt) saying that he had watched the Bengali film, that he had absolutely loved it, he wanted to produce the Hindi version and he could not see anyone else in that role. So I wanted to watch the film and I was like ‘oh my God’. Normally it would not have excited me for the film had just been made and I do not like the idea of remakes. Then I watched it with an open mind and I was blown away. I wanted to work for a man who had such a deep-seated understanding of women, their lives, hearts, courage and their core. I decided to do it and I am glad I did it. It’s not a film that you get everyday.
Is Begum Jaan the most wholesome character you have playedIJ Where would you rate it, is it close to your character in IshqiyaIJ
I would call this character a consummate woman as she is complete in herself. She is not looking for any kind of validation. She is not looking for any kind of support. She is not looking for approval. She’s fearless, she’s ferocious, she’s vibrant. And it’s very rare that you get to see, at least in my mind, a female character on screen who is fierce and hasn’t had a change of personality by the end. Begum Jaan doesn’t soften or crumble. She is unapologetic about who she is.
Considering you have played strong and varied women protagonists, would you like to keep doing them or try to change things a bitIJ Other actors are now also into the women-centric genre of films even if all of them are not benchmark...
It’s not like I have decided to do one kind of cinema. But as long as people continue to do women-centric films, it’s okay with me. One may use this category or genre to sell any kind of film or get it under the spotlight. I am okay with even that transgression. You’d rather have that so that the success ratio of these films improves, so that there is more investment for the wheel to keep going. Every film will not be outstanding but that’s okay. I have been a part of some films that have not done well commercially but have presented everyday characters.
First there was you. Now many younger actresses are speaking their mind on pay parity, discrimination and nepotism. Is the industry taking such statements in its stride or is it being closed and bitter about itIJ
See, the industry is part of society. It’s very easy to slut-shame women actors because films are a projection of societal mindsets. But I believe that truth is not absolute, there is nobody who can be entirely truthful. I didn’t go through nepotism. But does that mean I can say that no one goes through itIJ Of course not. Different people have different experiences and we must respect that. Just like in this country, we need to accept the fact that people here belong to different religious communities. Different women have different bodies, we need to respect that.
Coming back to your question, the industry has to change because society is being forced to change its attitude towards women. Women are changing their own attitude towards themselves. Therefore, the change of attitude towards men is a by-product. People everywhere are going to have to look at women differently. As a result there are going to be stronger forces to bring you down, to shut you up. As long as we are putting up a fight, as long as we are fighting to be the stakeholders of our own lives, we will be fine.
Do you think the younger actresses have somewhere been encouraged by your sassIJ
I don’t think that women or girls are speaking their minds out enough. But everyone is waking up. I am no one to say whether anyone is speaking up or not. It’s incredible that nowadays there is actually a dialogue, there is a noise within us that was muffled and we are slowly finding a voice.
So when do you plan to make movies on your ownIJ
As long as there are people like Srijit, I don’t have to (laughs)
Photo: Pankaj Kumar