Caste, Gender, and Cinematic Authorship in Geeli Pucchi and Article 15
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While the Hindi film industry has dished out consistently strong female characters every passing year, what requires examination is whether such progressions have been accorded to the Dalit heroine as well. Historically, cinematic renditions of Dalit women have tended to portray them as meek and submissive, often bearing the brunt of a two-fold oppression on account of their gender and their caste location. Bharti and Gaura are the Dalit heroines from two much-discussed films of the last decade – GeeliPucchi (Ajeeb Daastaans, 2021) and Article 15 (2019). This research paper examines whether and how the cinematic rendition of the Dalit female has evolved. An academic dissection of the two films reveals two vastly different characters, whose treatment also differs in the filmmakers' hands. The power dynamic of a graded, casteist, and patriarchal society plays out minutely in their lives as both decide to stand up to it to varying degrees. Bharti uses her existence at the intersections of various marginalised identities to become an agentic player in her life, while Gaura shows promise of something similar.
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