Iran: Women, Films, and A Separation

In a land where, acting is categorized as a decadent cultural practice; actors are forced to unreasonable conformity and women actors follow the Islamist edict of maintaining the stringent code of conduct; it is an avant-garde to make cinema portraying real Iran.

Iran’s film industry is known for its strife against the fundamentalism and the ever-changing decree related to the depiction of women affairs in films. It is astonishing to see that in a nation which is still driven by religious fanaticism, filmmakers are attempting to make remarkable films conforming to the obstinate laws that govern it. 

Iran as a nation has frequently witnessed movements related to women rights. Cinema seems to be a practice; especially a respite to the prevalent rules that demarcate women’s existence. If we observe; the recent times have made cinema a yardstick to measure the social, political, cultural and economical progress in Iran. The filmmakers through their innovative depiction and portrayal of realism in an innocuous manner have made their voices heard, and also at the same time kept the moral watchdogs at bay.

Women characters on screen are evidently entangled between the intertwining state regulations and socio-cultural limitations. If we look at the history of women actors in Iran; theirs is the most deplorable position. The societal norms albeit stern and contentious; filmmakers are driven more by a strong passion, to make cinema a medium to voice their apprehensions in the muddled state.

Even today, the appearance of uncovered women on screen is strictly forbidden. A woman’s interaction with men other than husband, father, brother and son is not allowed. Under this overbearing religious dogma, making a full length cinema featuring women is a difficult job. The filmmakers’ skills lie in following a non-confrontational narrative style of expression. Female characters were however bound by the persisting religious and social demands. Their characters are restricted to secondary roles.  Even through the secondary characters; mainly that of mothers, sisters and wives and women, they were unable to depict their part realistically, owing to decree that limit their interaction with the opposite sex. Even the slightest idea of suggestive sexual attraction was considered decadent and threatening; and hence got omitted in most of the cases.

 A Separation 

A Separation by Asghar Farhadi is winning rave reviews across the globe. The film which portrays the predicament of a middle class Iranian family at the verge of annulment has won immense acclaim and prestigious recognitions from critics and viewers alike. The latest achievement to the films credit is the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film 2012.

The film is a representation of the conflicts between hope and the dismay that clouds the present life of the lead characters. It begins with a colossal disappointment in the marital life of two young middle class Iranians, Nader and Simin.  It is a stark imagery of the current social, economical, and cultural scenario in Iran.

Simin bears the responsibility of the well being of the family and wants them to move out of Iran to provide a bright future to her 12 year old daughter Teremeh. Her husband, Nader, disapproves the idea of fleeing Iran for a better place; he reasons his disapproval of the flight with the degenerating condition of his old father afflicted by Alzheimers. The couple separates; leaving the daughters life in a disjointed situation.

A Separation implicitly depicts the abject realities of life. The gulf that divides the privileged and the underprivileged is shown in the light of a disagreement. Simin while leaving her husband’s home hires a home maid, Razieh who is 3 months pregnant, to take care of her husband’s home, which also has his ailing father, and their daughter. On Razieh’s first day at Nader’s house; she is duty-bound to clean the old man who urinated in his pants. Before cleaning the old man, Razieh – perplexed and apprehensive, like any other woman would have been in her position; calls up a cleric, to confirm whether if it was unlawful of her to clean a “na-mahram”(a man other than, husband, brother, father and son). This particular scene evokes the moral dilemma during the time of adversity; the film has several scenes, where we come across the confrontation between the two impossible choices - between religious ethics and humanism. As the film progresses, a certain unpleasant event compels Nader to push the home maid out of the house, causing an injury that results in an abortion. This results in a chain of events. The film is an intense narrative, which needs the viewers full focus to decipher the intricacies that this (if I can call it) thriller poses.

The major themes in the film are family loyalty, religion, economical inequality, migration, class division, and troubled-relations. The film also in a way satirizes the much debated “veiling of women”. It subtly evokes the irrationality behind the dress code, and this is pretty evident when the protagonist claims his ignorance to the fact that the home maid was pregnant, and this he attributes to the chador(fabric to cover the body, similar to purdah), which makes it difficult to determine the physical traits of a pregnant woman. The Koran is a re-occurring aspect, as the victim of the crime is a deeply religious woman, who experiences a conflict between moral imperatives at various junctures in the film.

Farhadi’s A Separation, doesn’t boast of technical brilliance or a phenomenal cinematography, as most of the film seems to be shot under hand held cameras. The unsteadiness of the shots particularly adds to the mystifying effect that this intense film exudes.

All the actors have been exceptionally gifted when it came to depicting their complex yet realistic characters with ease and utmost conviction.

Rating: 3.5/5

* The introduction is the result of my extensive reading about Iran and this is my first Iranian film. Gratitude to my MA program, I am glad that they prescribed Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi, as it has made me perceptive to women centric issues.

The Artist - A Review

The Artist boasts of a stellar star cast, and most of them unknown to this end of the world. The movie was a light romantic comedy with top notch performances from the entire cast, and nothing seemed out of place. Especially the first 20 minutes seemed picture perfect, an almost Utopian world with a happy man; so flamboyant in style; walking up and down with an air of finesse in his antics. The film has a linear narrative, with an amazing direction and choreography. 

The movie beautifully etches the trajectories of two individuals who sail through both ups and downs in their respective careers. About the performances, Jean Dujardin a relatively fresh face to me added an élan and charisma to George Valentine, the thriving star of the silent films. Dujardin, based on my friend’s inputs, is a household name in France, as he was a part of a host of TV shows, and is reckoned to be one of the best comic actors of his generation. Djuardin’s fascinating portrayal of the vivacious star makes the entire film even more captivating. He is sublime in depicting the king of the silent films, who offers small little expensive tokens to make up with an ever badgering wife, as well as undergoes a traumatic phase owing to his downfall. His dapper look brought back the memory of Gene Kelly from Singing in the Rain, a musical, again based on the transitional phase of a silent film production company to a talky.

Another major lead is Bérénice Bejo, a surprisingly refreshing performance. Bejo lives through Peppy Miller, a young dancer who admires Valentine to an extent that she harbors a certain platonic love for the aging superstar. The chemistry between Djuardin and Bejo is startling. Bejo adeptly pulls off both the diva Peppy Miller, as well as the aspirant young dancer; who sashays with exuberance. Both the leads render and endearing performance, their light-hearted camaraderie on the screen is invigorating. The surprise package in the film is the amazingly adorable dog, Uggie, whose frolics add to the feel good factor of the film.

The imagery used to re-create the silent era is breathtakingly stunning. The superb cinematography enlivens the black and white frames. Personally, I was a bit skeptical about the whole idea of a black and white silent film made in the 21^st century; nevertheless the vintage air of the film inundated my skepticism.

After being conditioned with films encompassing epic dialogues and metanarratives; watching this film without dialogues was a brand new experience, The Artist, as a whole reverberates, without dialogues. The costumes were a commendable effort, as it provided a perfect setting for the time frame the film intended to capture. It’s really a treat for those who love vintage clothing and accessories. Hazanavicius’ The Artist bears a superficial resemblance to Kelly’s Singing in the Rain, as it was a musical. Yet the tap dance sequences and background score reminds you of Kelly’s masterpiece.

As we know simplicity is not as simple as it seems; this applies to The Artist as well; the film turned out to be a fine product owing to its intricate detailing, and fine craft. However, there were some usual clichés and predictability in the film, but owing to the vintage aura that this silent film endorses; one can ignore the trivial glitches.

Rating: ***/5

Torrent

A torrent that torments me;

Encircles me,

Gushes through my limbs;

Wanes my will

Licks my hair – the promiscuous maul

The vaporous blue stream, keeps afloat my soul

Wafts over the soft hair on my delicate body,

Unable to shroud the despair;

I succumb to the homicidal tempest...

19th August 2011

Gulped the yellow fumes;

In a street immersed in golden hue,

Slept on the lonely divider

Yapped with the jolly hawker;

The maker of the overflowing crisp dumplings

Stuffed in my mouth is the savory delight,

Entered a contest to swear full-mouthed

I battled; with curses as my weapon,

Barked aimlessly at the swiftness of the passing vans

What a day, hectic yet so divine….

24th July 2011

Walking in the narrow lanes of the old city makes me ecstatic,

It replenishes my yearning for wandering,

In the unknown spaces of these mystic lanes

It somewhere completes a story,

That remained incomplete through ages,

In the labyrinths of my consciousness

The old houses here are the faces that narrate,

The splendor of the vibrant past

Of Lords, Kings, Queens and customs

To the kaleidoscope called the old city

PS- Dedicated to my meanderings in the old parts of Vadodara....

First 3D experience

I had this odd fixation towards 3D movies since ages, and recently I got an opportunity to embrace it. I, along with good friend Ikram, out of curiosity ventured to watch Vadodaras first 3D flick at our very own Inox multiplex. I had to control myself, as I was being hysterical and way too overboard with expectations. The movie I am talking about is Sanctum directed by Alister Grierson.

The film is set in Papua New Guinea, where five people set out on an underwater cave expedition get trapped as a result of flooding. The film is about their confounding journey through the unexplored water caves to reach safe land. The film lacks emotional connect. The father and son played by Richard Roxburgh (Frank) and Rhys Wakefield (Josh) appear to be stereotyped. By now one must have seen ample amount of films dealing with a ruthless father and a son who cannot come to terms with his emotionally crabbed father. As usual, their long lost affection and concern for each other is kindled through this survival journey. The actors, though never heard of them before, were sufficient.

About the 3D experience, although it looks catchy, I strongly felt that 3-D was not necessary in the film; however, it does heighten the claustrophobic effect in the film. For a first timer like me, I was happy, though I longed to see some more enthralling and breath-taking visuals. The cinematography of the underwater sequences is superb, though some of the scenes did appear over the top and phony.

 Regardless of the fact that the film comes with a James Cameron(who is one of the 9 producers of the film) tag, it is a damp squib, and it cannot be matched to Cameron’s previous movies. It’s worth a watch for the nausea-inducing cave experience…:P

127 Hours

 Just watched Danny Boyles much anticipated film, 127 Hours…


“Brilliant” is the word. The visuals and sound effects are outstanding. Despite the initial reports suggesting that the makers have zeroed in on character actor Cillian Murphy to play the lead in 127 Hours, Boyle was wise enough to switch on to James Franco at the last moment. However, Boyle’s judgment proved right, and Franco did justice to his part playing the celluloid version of real-life mountain climber and public speaker Aron Ralston. The film moves back and forth in time, it deals with the predicament of the protagonist(Aron), who once takes on a hiking trip to Canyonlands National Park of Utah, where a boulder dislodges and crushes his right forearm, pinning it against the canyon wall. Aron is trapped with a smashed hand for 5 long days. His adverse state is elucidated with intricacy, which makes it compelling and also grotesque, especially the self amputation scene – kudos to the handiwork of the makeup effects artist. It was so real that it would make one skip a beat. Aron’s ordeal is superbly portrayed. Solitude is not all very endearing; Boyle has subtly treated the philosophical aspect of solitude. It is a survival film, and it is equally challenging to its viewers too, as it puts them in the same ensnared situation as Aron. Excellent photography, amazing landscapes and terrific background score by AR Rahman.


In the scene where he states that he gulped his urine that he saved in his Camelback, the music that is playing in the background is the same tune heard in the beginning of the song Behne De from Raavan.


Its a must watch.... 

Why?

Thou art indeed just, Lord, if I contend
With thee; but, sir, so what I plead is just.
Why do sinners' ways prosper? and why must
Disappointment all I endeavour end?

Wert thou my enemy, O thou my friend,
How wouldst thou worse, I wonder, than thou dost
Defeat, thwart me? Oh, the sots and thralls of lust
Do in spare hours more thrive than I that spend,
Sir, life upon thy cause. See, banks and brakes
Now leavèd how thick! lacèd they are again
With fretty chervil, look, and fresh wind shakes
Them; birds build -- but not I build; no, but strain,
Time's eunuch, and not breed one work that wakes.
Mine, O thou lord of life, send my roots rain.

-Gerard Manley Hopkins

Revelry

Saturday evening

Lustrous sky

Stooping towers of magnificence

Voices lost amid thumping hearts...

ZzZZzZZzing my way...

It was a lazy day...did nothing but bunked classes..had a couple of files to complete so half of the day was spent in working, the other half munching on junk food. After a long time, I enjoyed a comedy flick with my brother, he is a nice silent chap, always a victim of my tantrums, but has got a heart of gold.

So the comedy flick I watched today was, " The Great Dictator", Charles Chaplin is a delight. I am watching this flick for the 4th time, it never bores you. It was released on 7th March 1941, and went on to become a blockbuster, the film is full of slapstick humour. It requires a lot of balls to satirize the Nazi Germany, especially during the 1940s..Chaplin makes joke out of almost everything. It is highly recommended if you want to sit back and relax on a lazy day.

The Great Dictator is Charles Chaplins first talkie film, is an excellent specimen of his talent..

After Life is Beautiful, this is the second movie in the same week related to the Nazi tyranny...history is very intriguing...I have always been fascinated with The Holocaust....I learned about this film called Der Untergang(2004), it deals with the last days of Hitlers rule..will get a hold of it soon....want to read more books and see more films on the evils of Nazism...

National paper reading competition in MSU

VADODARA: The department of English at M S University's Faculty of Arts will hold its annual A K Ramanujan national paper reading competition on Monday and Tuesday.

Thirteen teams comprising two delegates each from various universities including Banaras Hindu University, Central University Hyderabad, EFLU Hyderabad, Central University Gandhinagar, Presidency College Kolkata, Pune University, S P University, Saurashtra University, Kutch University, Gujarat University, Veer Narmad South Gujarat University, Ahmednagar College and MSU among others will be making presentations on various areas such as fiction, film, drama and poetry.

The paper reading contest is designed to encourage masters students to make academic presentations of a fairly high standard, on subjects related to India which are interdisciplinary and contemplate the Indian scenario, so as to give young participants an idea of possible areas of research after the MA programme.

Reflections 1st Jan 2011

How has been 2010?

Great indeed! Topsy-turvy, wierd, bizzare, funny and deadly moments 2010 had it all.

Blessed with lots of cheerful moments.

I have been into a lot of activities which has widened my outlook and let me explore the new spheres of possibilities. I met a bunch of creative people, and intellectuals as well. Undergone several tests and interviews, met several big shots in the city’s corporate world and media. Each experience was learning. My first theatre experience took place this year, had an opportunity to work with a team of innovative and acclaimed artists from Assam. 

Friends and family have been supportive. Field trip from college was again an enriching experience; the seminars where I made flash appearances have enlightened me a lot. Feel really lucky to have wonderful batch mates and the best teachers.

I have been intrigued to research on several topics; hopefully will find time to work on my dream projects.

About college, I have a lot of interesting novels to complete, lord bless me to find time for them.

On the personal front, it was a modest year. Finally I am able to get out of the loop called emotions and sentimentality. I am grateful to people, who made me realize that emotions and sentiments are vicious, as they hinder your path to glory. There should be no room for emotions, when it comes to duty. The only emotional attachment should be to your work, again this has been defied, and it changes from person to person. When we talk about emotional values towards ones work, it deals with ones sincere love for work.  The doctrine in The Gita on non-attachment in work holds good. Here non-attachment means being unselfish when it comes to your work. Being loyal and truthful to your work will empower you to overlook issues…these all have been stated years ago. Its true, but in the present world one needs to be rational and make an effort to make public about ones toil, as long as his/her primary motive is to earn big bucks. This clash of contemporary and tradition has always amazed me.  

The conclusion to all this digressive ideas is that I have been successful in detaching myself from all the issues and people, who don't really matter to me.

I have a long way to go... 

Random scribblings 1

While walking in the storm, I realized the meaning of calm

While walking in the rains, I realized what sunlight meant to me

While being clutched down by the cacophony of fanfare, I realized how sweet solace was

Now, walking empty in this lane reminds me of the lovely moment together,

Which we enjoyed like a fairytale dream,

There is no merry in counting the stars anymore;

While I stare at the sky, I can still recall those castles,

Which we built on that vast blue canvas,

The filthy smell of this lane makes your fragrance oriental.

While reading, I miss those endless phrase and words that your eyes exuded

PS--Am no poet, just an adventurous attempt, Thanks to my brothers new phone, i wrote this while walking down a busy street...:-P

18th July 2010, 8:28 PM

Had a messy day..:-(

After half day's work, I was eagerly waiting to watch a sci-fi thriller after long time. Sadly was trapped between my own inner conflicts and the result was – when I went there, it was a houseful board and a lanky fellow who greeted me.  Anyhow, getting late everywhere was not my usual excuse this time, it was more of the duality in me that I have started to dislike. It is strange that you aim for something and move towards it and by the time you reach half the way; you come across something new and begin to adore the new happening and forego your plan.

I feel like writing something from the past….well here it goes

When I was in my 5^th grade, I had this terrible pain in my ear. On the first day I was accompanied by mom to the doctor( though I never liked going to places with my parents, as they always found me misbehaving and had to spank me mid-way). The next day I was to go alone, was not really happy about it(contradicting my own want to soothe the ear pain), I rode my bicycle to the doctors place which was nearby, half the way I met my friend, who appeared to be very cheerful and enthusiastic. He had a rectangular box wrapped in a fancy paper with pink and white flowers on it. He exclaimed that it was like a dream come true moment for him. On being asked what it was, he replied, “this is something your father will never let you even have a look at, owing to your school record”, well that comment made me frown. Nevertheless, frowning was swiped away from my face instantly, with the overwhelming curiosity. I grew impatient and went with him to his house, in his room we sat and stared at the box, after a while his mother came in and asked us to open the package. It was a rush of excitement. The moment he opened the box, I was the one to shout in awe….it was a marvel gadget, which I always dreamt of (I later got bogged with it, as I got it when I was in 7^th). It was the 8 bit Contra game set, my friend was not as excited as I was, and I played for half an hour (moment of ecstasy for a 10 yr old). Suddenly I realized that I had to go to the doctor, I stood up and stuffed all the snacks in my pockets and rushed to my cycle. Happily and merrily, yet in fright of the scolding from my dad, I rode in the crowded street like a super-hero. Again, on my way I saw a wedding procession - processions with music and dancers always fascinated me. I could stand and stare the walking talking stage for hours together, while I was enjoying the thumping beats, Sunderan uncle (my neighbor), saw me, he was a fat stout fellow, he moved with great force towards me, amidst the noise I could see him marching towards me, but I was lost in the thunder beats. He came to me tweaked my ears saying, “why do I always find you roaming, I need to talk to Mr. Jose”, I was dead scared. He asked me to go home immediately, in sheer fright I ran towards home, but later I realized it was already 8, and mom must be worried. I was determined to see the doctor at any cost or else the long dirty stick(chooral) will ease my back.  I rode in a haste to the hospital, I was already late and the doctor went home; there was a lady (I still don’t recall if she was a doctor or a compounder). I told her everything; my ear and what took me so long, she asked me to relax, she went inside-a small cabin behind the doctor’s table- and came out with a small packet of small white cute little tablets. I asked her if she was sure about the medicine, she told me that doctor had directed her to do so.  I went home with the tablets, got scolding for being late. I made an innocent face by saying that the hospital was crowded (I was good at fabricating long stories even then (born liar)). After I had my dinner, I gulped the medicine and slept peacefully. After few hours, I sensed a growling inside my stomach, felt like someone was crunching my stomach, I rushed to my mom, woke her up…My whole night was spent in the toilet.

It was in the morning when my mom visited the doctor that I realized that the lady gave me medicine to cure constipation, which was reserved for some other hyper-curious kid.

12th July 2010, 9:26 PM

 What’s the real change?

A change is a sign of growth in any form, and yes if I ask myself whether I have experienced this change in me?..well i have my own answer to this question. While re-introspecting, I realized I have outgrown myself with time. It’s a feeling similar to winning a battle. After all these years of self study, now it’s time to look back, how much I have improved, how my deeds have contributed in my individual growth. Life was so simple then, so is it now, our outlook is what makes life appear complicated. The first thing I recently realized, was that I have grown to size M i.e. I have put on weight. This is a symbiotic process, as the more merrier you are, the more healthy life you lead. Over the past years, I have undergone the worst setbacks in my life, one of them being my Dad’s sudden death. It can be called the most painful as well as the most crucial point In my life. His demise was my first rendezvous with death; it gave me a whole new perspective on life, the significance of man and his goodwill in the society. My father was a role model to me, the way he dealt with people, he was a real humanitarian. When he was alive I never really got inspired by his social activities and how important he was to his community and society.  The value of a man can be judged by the number of people who visit his funeral- this is what got my attention. After his death, I spent days and night thinking about him, and what I learned from him. The answer is he was a self-motivated human being, whose adaptability was in compliance with the changing times and generations. Talking about the change, I have realized that the more new faces I meet, the more I get to learn. There was a time when I had a flow of thoughts and words to put them together, but now I am running out of words, all this is a part of the change. There has been not a single moment in our lives, where we have not experienced a change. Change is indeed a good sign. Well, it can be a lot more significant if it is for the welfare. Change is inevitable, so its utterly pointless to complain and criticize it. However, as long as we breathe, we will experience this phenomenon.

I am none to comment on the cyclic system of change, as there have been several experts who have spoken or concluded about the forms and causes of change. As a layman, I am putting this here, just to share what I feel about this unavoidable factor “The Change”.

6th July 2010

Innuendo

There has been nothing that I could change about you…

I love you to the extent of sheer hatred

Why would I change you?

No one should change anyone; all is well and is in right place

The only thing that needs to be changed is the view,

I hate having the thought of changing and molding you

Isn’t that mean?

Love and lust is selfish.......

2 July 2010

Hello, all

I have been lost for a couple of years, here I am back. There have been lots of twists and turns in my life. I have seen faces, pretty ones, the nasty, the modest ones and the envious ones. I am learning a lot more things in life now. I am extremely happy, the way my career is shaping up. I would love to mention those who have been a motivation; sadly the number of names is bigger than the space here.

Rain

Rain itself is an emotion, which I and you have in our lives

Rain is a celebration for some,

While it mourns for some,

We wish it could end all the sorrows, yet it stays in our lives

The pasture in a farm oozes with lush greenery after the rains,

The concrete jungle is wiped out of all its malice after the rains,

Life before rain was dry and desolate

Life after rain is gay with the gifts of nature

Walking in the rain is a pleasure for all,

The splatter of delight on the bodies

Are like spears for some,

And for some they are the sparkling pearls of salvation

Some enjoy the rains, without fearing its cost

But some fear it and miss the splash of happiness

Under the pretext of epidemics

Love blossoms amidst the downpour of crystal

Rain washes out the houses of the poor,

It bestows wealth to those with acres of land

It kills many, but helps some

It is a normal routine for some, for some it’s an uninvited guest

Rain is a lullaby; it is subtle like a mother’s song

It is an end to the desperate wait of a lover, so long

It soothes million hearts and quenches the thirst of the soil

Rain cleanses our sins, and sanctifies our souls

Random Thoughts

Life : is a narrow stream. It takes you everywhere, from the mountains to the plains; from the forest to the farms. It changes its shape wherever it goes and at the end rests in the bosom of the Ocean. An ocean may be called the home for many other water bodies, similarly our lives are also like the stream. It travels everywhere and ends in death: salvation the ocean. We all are born from nowhere and die unknown.

10 June 2009, I turned 21, the journey from birth till the 21^st year was a roller coaster ride. I have outgrown myself throughout these years. There had been happy moments and sad ones. For me each moment and every new event were like a celluloid dream, I can visualize the things of my past and also sometimes learn things from them. I thank almighty for all the good reasons as well as the bad ones. I am grateful to him for all the tribulations that I underwent during the course of time. He made me think and overdo actions beyond my capabilities. I have seen millions of faces and heard millions of words. It’s amazing that no two beings are alike in this world. It should be an honour for each man to be made uniquely by the master. I have learned many things in my life. Learning helps us to build our outlook towards life and at 21, I feel like being 41. My wisdom is because of my curiosity and unending thirst for developing new ideas.

Friends: I have millions of friends. Now that the world is becoming smaller I have started getting friend requests from other ends of the world. Thanks to all the social sites and mutual friends. Friends are an important aspect for our growth both mentally and socially. However it can be hazardous at times when you have lot of friends to love and live with.