Gulabi Talkies

Gulabi is a Muslim village midwife who works in an area that is mainly Hindu. In between jobs, she is a passionate lover of movies and a regular at the town cinema. One day, her help during the delivery of a child is so valuable that the rich family rewards her with a TV set and satellite dish. This dramatically changes Gulabi’s life, as well as her position in the poor village that has ignored her so far. Her husband, who lives with a younger second wife who bore him a child, starts visiting Gulabi’s hut. He eats her food and becomes affectionate again.
Issues of consumerism, social discrimination, communal violence and political tensions between India and Pakistan are subtly interwoven with the intimate drama of Gulabi. A dynamic tool for the drama is the metaphysical notion of ‘window’ – from our own home to that of our neighbours, as well as television as a ‘window on the world’, evoking desires, self-reflection and imposing political views. All characters (performed by non-professional and local actors except for the famous Umashree as Gulabi) are amazingly strong and convincing. Former IFFR Film maker in Focus (2003) Girish Kasaravalli often deals with women’s issues, having his protagonists stand out as rebels against society. (RS)