“Felt Reduced To A Vagina Only.” Swara Bhasker Slams Sanjay Bhansali For ‘Glorifying Jauhar’

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After a long myriad of spats/feuds/clashes, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Padmaavat’ finally made it to the big screens, ending anticipation of hundreds of cine-goers. But I’d be lying if I said that the film has stopped making headlines because of wrong reasons.

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Amidst appreciation for aesthetics and applaud-worthy performances by the cast–especially Ranveer Singh as the fierce Khilji–the film has also drawn major criticism for the way the climax (read the jauhar scene) was shot and depicted.

In fact, Bollywood actress Swara Bhasker is one amongst those. She has even penned a brutal open letter to Sanjay Leela Bhansali after watching the period saga, blasting him for ‘glorifying jauhar’.

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The ‘Veere Di Wedding’ actress, who began her piece with appreciating the genius of SLB as a film-maker, left scathing remarks later with articulated pointers emphasising that women have the right to life after rape. She wrote, 

“It is because of this attachment and concern that I had for the film that I am SO stunned having watched it. And perhaps that is why I take the liberty and have the temerity to write to you. I will try and be concise and direct though there is much to say.

  • Women have the right to live, despite being raped, sir.
  • Women have the right to live, despite the death of their husbands, male ‘protectors’, ‘owners’, ‘controllers of their sexuality’.. whatever you understand the men to be.
  • Women have the right to live — independent of whether men are living or not.
  • Women have the right to live. Period.

It’s actually pretty basic. Some more basic points:

  • Women are not only walking talking vaginas.
  • Yes, women have vaginas, but they have more to them as well. So their whole life need not be focused on the vagina, and controlling it, protecting it, maintaining its purity. (Maybe in the 13th century that was the case, but in the 21st century, we do not need to subscribe to these limiting ideas. We certainly do not need to glorify them.)
  • It would be nice if the vaginas are respected; but in the unfortunate case that they are not, a woman can continue to live. She need not be punished with death because another person disrespected her vagina without her consent.
  • There is life outside the vagina, and so there can be life after rape. (I know I repeat, but this point can never be stressed enough.)
  • In general, there is more to life than the vagina.

 

This, after she pledged to have spoken for and supported the movie at a time when a few stood up for it.

Swara who is known to speak her mind without fearing consequences even went on to add that she felt like a vagina and vagina only. 

“You may be wondering why the hell I am going on and on thus about vaginas. Because Sir, that’s what I felt like at the end of your magnum opus. I felt like a vagina. I felt reduced to a vagina–only.

Your film, it felt, had brought us back to that question from the Dark Ages – do women – widowed, raped, young, old, pregnant, pre-pubescent… do they have the right to live?

In her counter-arguments, she posed questions like “Sir, you will say to me that I am over-reacting and that I must see the film in its context” and answered them with astute brevity. 

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“The context of art, any art is the time and place when it was created and consumed. And that’s why this gang-rape infested India, this rape condoning mindset, this victim blaming society is the actual context of your film, Sir. Surely in this context, you could have offered some sort of a critique of Sati and Jauhar in your film?”

Firing shots about the much-debated climax, she wrote…

“I felt very uncomfortable watching your climax, watching that pregnant woman and little girl walk into the fire. I felt my existence was illegitimate…”

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“Because God forbid anything untoward happened to me, I would do everything in my power to sneak out of that fiery pit– even if that meant being enslaved to a monster like Khilji forever. I felt in that moment that it was wrong of me to choose life over death. It was wrong to have the desire to live.”

You can read her entire letter here.

Now, one could argue the if’s and but’s of it all, but Swara’s critique resonates with a bunch of viewers who were disappointed that Bhansali did not add any social commentary on the evil practice. Let us know what are your thoughts on the same in the comments.

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