International Women’s Day: Iconic women characters in Bengali cinema

In a mostly male-dominated, patriarchal society, strong women-centric characters are written in Indian cinema rarely. Still every now and then, a hand full of female actors essay such brave roles and make us sit up and take notice. These characters in a way give us the required push to be free, independent, liberated and live life on own terms. On International Women's Day, we list down the most iconic women-centric characters in Bengali cinema.

Karuna Bandopadhyay plays Sarbajaya, the mother of Apu and Durga, who is a really strong-willed village woman. She is firm, stern and at the same time in her relation with Indir Thakrun, to some extent cruel. Indir Thakrun somehow reflects the soul of rural Bengal whose depravity can be seen all over her body. Satyajit Ray introduces Sarbajaya as a loving mother but a bit distant some times and surely the one who prefers to keep the reins of her dilapidated family in her own hands.

Though the plot of this Bengali cult classic might appear overly tragic, Ritwik Ghatak, through Nita (played by Supriya Devi), shows us a powerful truth. We have to learn to live for ourselves as much as we tend to live for our loved ones. As our aspirations are often pushed deeper and deeper into a circle of responsibilities and obligations, we start breaking down, first mentally and ultimately physically. Nita’s character also points towards the crossroad between dedication to one’s art or being practical and getting a job. Through this, Ghatak also rediscover another somber truth. We rarely achieve a goal by ourselves. Anyone who achieves anything significant in his/her life actually had the support of someone.

It’s about a young educated woman Paromita (Rituparna) who can’t adjust to her incompatible husband and gets a divorce but retains good relation with a sympathetic mother-in-law Sanaka (Aparna Sen). She gets a job in an advertising firm, falls for a smart filmmaker and eventually marries him. However, she keeps in touch with the family whose problems multiply. Her friendship with mother-in-law still survives all tragedies and on her death bed, she finds a place in being taken care of by her former daughter-in-law. The film is morbid but gives one of the best performers in Aparna Sen and Rituparna.

Based on the Rabindranath Tagore novel ‘Nastanirh’ (The Broken Nest), the film tells the story of a lonely housewife, Charu (a superb performance by Madhabi Mukherjee), who lives a wealthy idle life and yet ignored by a workaholic husband. It also shows how the arrival of her husband’s young cousin somehow awakens her sexuality and ambitions. The film deftly reflects the dilemma of Charulata and the grey areas of her strong emotional feelings of dissatisfaction in marriage and the confusing relationships.

In a simple story, Jaya Ahsan as Padma unveils a masterclass in acting. Jaya’s subdued performance weaved around unspoken words and an equally tempting wounded gaze can leave you speechless sometimes. Padma(Lotus), with a symbolic significance related to river Padma, somehow serves as the sole geographical connection between India and Bangladesh. Padma decided to live with the memories of her dead husband than falling prey to the pressure of constant favours offered by a middle-aged wealthy businessman (Kaushik Ganguly), who wants to marry her with her consent some day. Jaya Ahsan nails the act with her stellar screen presence. The insecurities of a lonely widow, the hidden desires of a woman, the responsibilities of a daughter-in-law, the growing fondness for Naser – she has expressed all the emotions through her eyes and facial gestures with minimal yet hard-hitting dialogues.

'Swet Patharer Thala' directed by Prabhat Roy deals with the situation of a widow Bandana in the post-independent period. The narrative also portrays the changing mindset in contemporary society. Aparna Sen as Bandana pulled off one of the best performances in her career. ‘Swet Patharer Thala’ tell us how difficult it is to bring about change and end the plight of women. The situation is quite similar to that which all women face, whether educated or working. Sabyasachi Chakraborty, Rituparna Sengupta, Indrani Haldar, Bhaskar Banerjee also played pivotal roles in this Bengali classic.

The 1973 Bengali superhit 'Basanta Bilap' managed to tickle the funny bone of a generation of movie buffs. The film saw a battle of ego between a group of four young ladies and men and their rivalry which soon lead to a romance, thus giving some of the best comic sequences ever. Portraying the character of a headstrong Anuradha, Aparna Sen once again showed how survive in a patriarchal society. Soumitra Chatterjee and Aparna Sen’s brilliant acts accentuated this film's simple storyline. It’s an out-and-out comedy with many stock characters that hold their own in this story with its many comical twists and turns.