This article totals: 4543 words, 29 figures
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On March 2, a tweet from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi exploded all indian netizens.
He said he would give up running his accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube on March 8.
After a day of anxiety among all-India netizens, he tweeted again, saying that the abandonment of business on this day was not to withdraw from the circle, but to give the microphone to women on The day of "International Women's Day".
Modi Twitter screenshot
That being said, it's not that simple.
In India, from the prime minister, there is Indira Gandhi, down to the states, counties, villages, there is no shortage of active female figures. But looking at the whole society, women seem to be a frequent absent presence. They have a narrow space for development, can only be subordinate to men, have an underground status, and suffer discrimination.
After independence, India did attach importance to women's rights, and also promulgated various laws, such as the Dowry Prohibition Law, the Hindu Inheritance Law, the Supplementary Regulations on the Prohibition of Child Marriage, the Anti-Domestic Violence Law, and so on. Even on 9 March 2010, the Federal Chamber of Deputies of India passed a bill to reserve 1/3 of the seats for women.
Indian women marching on the streets
However, traditional bad habits are deeply rooted and difficult to eliminate for a while, and the law is a formality, which is also an obvious problem.
Not to mention the constraints of religious beliefs, the lack of economic independence, Indian women want to go out of the family, out of confinement, independently grab wheat to speak out, it is definitely not easy.
The mighty Me Too fire burned all over Hollywood, spreading all the way to the world, and Bollywood could not avoid it.
At a time when the international community is paying great attention to women's rights, "Mysterious Superstar" is also released in China. In the film, the confrontation between feminism and male power, and the story of girls bravely chasing their dreams, have aroused heated discussion in China.
Mysterious Superstar poster
Coupled with the previous hit "Wrestling, Daddy", we found that more and more Feminist Indian movies are gradually entering the eyes, such as "A Mother's Revenge" adapted from "Delhi Black Bus Case".
In these films, there is no shortage of self-reliant, self-reliant, and confident female figures, which have impressed audiences around the world. Similarly, this is also a voice weapon for Indian women, movies.
Although in India's traditional film industry system, men dominate and firmly control the central work of directors and screenwriters.
However, with the changes of the times and the changes of society, more and more Indian female filmmakers, hand-directed tubes, face audiences around the world, send out their own voices, and tell their own stories.
"The Country Without Women", an Indian film with obvious feminist overtones
They pay attention to women's rights, tell the lives of marginalized people, and express their views on the times with their own unique perspectives.
01 Deepa Mehta
Deepa Mehta, an Indian Canadian, won the Golden Camera Award at the Cannes Film Festival for her debut sam & Me (1991).
She directed Water (also translated as Moon River), Earth and Love Fire, commonly known as the "Elemental Trilogy", which is known worldwide. "Water," in particular, was not only the opening film of the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival, but also nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
Water (also translated as River of the Moon)
This story, which takes place in Varanasi, is long and calm, as deep as water. A child-married girl, who became a widow at the age of 8, had to shave her hair and live in a widow's house for the rest of her life. Here, there are beautiful and kind women who bravely pursue love, there are also women who are bent on collecting money and cruel, and there are also old people who have lived most of their lives. The fate of all people flows like water.
The film was originally scheduled to be shot in India in 2000, but Hindu fundamentalists fanned unrest, burned the set, and even threatened the director and actors to force a production shutdown. The crew then moved to Sri Lanka and didn't finish filming until June 2004.
Deepa Mehta once said, "All art is political, not personal." It somehow reflects the politics of our time. I don't think I'm going to hold up a sign in the film. But these stories that face reality will inspire me. That must also be something I'm passionate about. ”
Directed by Deepa Mehta
Her films, indeed. Coming from a documentary background, she truly recorded the stories of the widows of India and Varanasi in her eyes. Whether it is suffering, despair, or vague hope, it is clear and moving.
02 Nandita Das
Randita Das was born on November 7, 1969 in Delhi, India, the son of the famous Indian painter Jatin Das, and his mother, Varsha Das, a writer.
And she, in the beginning, was an actress who also starred in Deepa Mehta's Water. She was also a member of the jury at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival.
Firaaq
But what makes everyone recognize her is the film she directed. For example, the 2008 film Firaaq (Pursuit). In Pursuit is india's second film about the 2002 community massacre in Gujarat. The slaughter of sentient beings for 24 hours is shown in the movie.
The Legend of Mando
More famous than "The Quest" is also a "Biography of Mando". In 1948, under the gloom of the partition of India and Pakistan, the controversial Urdu writer Mendo had to flee from Mumbai to Lahore, Pakistan. His upheavals and mental struggles are precisely expressed.
In just a few strokes, Randita Dass uses her unique female perspective to outline the strength and courage of Madame Mando, and also depicts the prostitutes who live in misery but do not lose their glory.
Nandita Das
Randita Dass starred in The Legend of Mando
The film was also nominated for the One Kind of Attention Award in the One Kind of Attention section of the 71st Cannes Film Festival. The combination of virtual and real editing, unique perspectives and viewpoints have won praise from professional film critics.
03 Aranqueretta Shrivastava
（Alankrita Shrivastava）
When it comes to Indian feminist films, Lipstick Under My Burkha (2016), directed by Aranqueret Shrivastava, must not be absent.
After winning the ranking of Best Picture in the Asian Future Section at the Tokyo International Film Festival in 2016, its popularity has continued to rise. He has won numerous awards at several internationally renowned film festivals such as the Mumbai Film Festival and IFFLA.
"Lipstick Under My Burqa"
Whether it's a female college student who wants to become a singer, wrapped in a burqa from head to toe; a beautician who wants to escape the town; a housewife who has given birth to three babies; or a widow who is more than half a hundred years old, they still yearn for a turnaround in life.
Even in the shackles of dance, these four independent Indian women have chosen to let the buds of feminism grow freely.
Aran krita Shrivastava is one of India's leading contemporary directors. She has previously assisted the famous Indian director Prakash Jha in directing Apaharan and collaborated with director Bulbul Biswas on films such as Rajneeti.
Recently, she also achieved great results in the Amazon drama "Made in Heaven" with Nitya Mehra, Zoya Akhtar and Prashant Nair.
Alankrita Shrivastava
In "Made in Paradise", it tells the life of two wedding planners, Tara and Karan. From the arranged marriages and dowry transactions they run, we can glimpse the fusion of old and new in India, and the collision between traditional and modern concepts.
04 Concorna Sen Sharma
（Konkona Sen Sharma）
It is worth mentioning that Concorna Sen Sharma, who once participated in "Lipstick Under My Burqa", is also a director.
A Death in the Gunj (2016) is one of her works. The film was selected for screening at the Hainan International Film Festival.
Concorna Sen Sharma
Koncona Sen Sharma's delicate depictions of the troubles of youth, his exposés of emotional violence and the indifference of the adult world, are impressive.
05 Zoya Akhtar
If you remember "India Has Hip Hop," which won multiple Oscars in India, you should know the film's director, Zoya Akhtar.
Zoya Akhtar
After graduating from NYU with a degree in filmmaking, she has assisted directors such as Mira Nair, Tony Gerber and Dev Benegal in filmmaking before directing films independently. The three-person Spanish road movie "Life Doesn't Start Again" is also one of her masterpieces.
Three men, in Spain with a mortal mindset, challenge the things they fear most in their hearts. Afraid of water, Arjun learned to dive, Imran, who was afraid of heights, went to participate in jumping machine training, and the timid Kabir finally joined the Spanish bull running team with Arjun and Imran.
"Life Never Comes Again"
The diving instructor in the film, Lyra (Katrina Katrina Kaif), a diving instructor in the film, is full of charm and has her own independent views, and it is under her influence that the three people's outlook on life and life are changing during this trip.
Zoya Akhtar also co-directed the Indian Film Industry Centennial (1913-2013) Bombay Talkies and the TV series Love Story, which continues the story of The Voice of Mumbai.
The attitudes of modern urban women in India towards love, sex and marriage are presented in the series. Their open and free attitude has also made the audience hail as the Indian version of "Sex and the City".
"Love Story"
06 Shao Nali Bose Shonali Bose
Shao Nali Bose is an internationally acclaimed filmmaker who grew up in Calcutta, Mumbai and New Delhi and spent adult life in the United States.
Her two feature films, Amu and Margarita with Straws, are both feature films, have appeared at more than 150 film festivals, including the Berlin International Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival, and won numerous internationally acclaimed awards (more than 40).
Margarita with a Straw
Lyra, the heroine of Margarita with a Straw, is a girl with cerebral palsy. She is a talented student at Delhi University, an aspiring writer and lyricist for university orchestras. But on the journey of love and self-exploration, it is not so smooth.
In The restrained and unsentimental lens language of Shao Nali Bose, the story of Lyra's self-search becomes very fresh and warm, whether it is coming out or self-identifying, it is very real.
Shao Nali Bose
07 Lena Yadav Leena Yadav
"Hot", which was released at the Toronto Film Festival, is also a very feminist film.
"Hot"
Rajasthan, countryside. Rani, widowed for many years in her 30s, was heavily in debt to run the wedding of her son's loser. After her marriage, She has not been able to have children, and her alcoholic husband often punches and kicks her.
Becky, on the other hand, is the flower queen of the wandering dance troupe, and the boss uses her body as a cash cow. Finally materialized and oppressed, they finally awaken and choose to flee like "The Last Wild Flower".
And director Lena Yadav, dare to choose such a contradictory and sharp subject matter for creation, how can it not be an act of courage?
Lena Yadav
Later, her "Rajma Chawal" is also a masterpiece of realism, using a story that takes place in the Internet age to dissect the father-son relationship with Indian characteristics.
08 Gauri Sindy Gauri Shinde
Indian English is a self-written and directed work by director Gorry Sindy and the opening film of the 37th Toronto Film Festival.
Indian housewives, played by Bollywood Queen Shri Dai Yu, are definitely worthy of the screen representative of india's feminist awakening in recent years. She relied on her own efforts to win the respect of her family, with great self-respect, but also gentle and moving.
Indian English
Under the interpretation of Shri Daiyu and the careful choreography of director Gorry Sindy, the whole film is like a spring wind and rain, India's cultural inferiority and women's equal rights issues, implicit in a family contradiction, but not let people feel fear.
In addition, the film "Dear Zindagi" (a beautiful life) about indian female photographers is also written and directed by director Ghuri Sindi.
Ghori Cindy and Ciri Daiyu
09 Mira Nair
When it comes to the legend of Indian female directors, Mira Nair can never be absent. Even if you look at the world and take stock of the world's top 100 female directors or female directors, she will definitely be on the list.
In 1988, the director's debut film,"Good Morning Mumbai," won the Golden Camera Award at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
"Good Morning Mumbai"
She is also the only director in India to be nominated for the Venice Film Festival three times. In 1991, "Mississippi Style Painting", nominated for the Golden Lion Award in the main competition unit. In 2001, Monsoon Walleding won the Golden Lion Award. In 2004, Vanity Fair was nominated again.
Born in 1957 and graduated from Harvard University, the female director is undoubtedly another bright Indian business card after Satyajit Ray.
Mira Nair
In the summer of 2000, Mira Nair completed the full filming of Monsoon Wedding in 30 days. This Punjabi wedding, the calm of the daily life is a dark tide.
Daughter Adit (Vasundhara Das) is ordered by her parents to marry the son of a wealthy businessman who has returned from studying in the United States. And she, who has not yet broken off relations with her lover, a married TV host. At the same time, the wedding designer and the maid are in love; the cousin and uncle are arguing over the issue of free love.
Monsoon Wedding
The complex oriental family relationships are all revealed in a wedding. Mixed in, there is also the struggle between East and West, tradition and modernity. Whether it is clothing or language, every detail is full of deep meaning.
In addition, the film "Hysterical Blindness", which won Uma Thurman a Golden Globe and An Emmy Award, is also a work directed by Mira.
Neurotic Blindness
Over the years, there have been more and more Indian female directors on the film stage, such as Amir Khan's wife, Kiran Rao is also a director, and Amir Khan's "Diary of Mumbai" is one of her masterpieces.
Husband and wife photo
These female directors strive to grasp the right to speak and speak for themselves. With a brave attitude, they are at the forefront of equal rights.
When Lipstick Under My Burqa was banned in India, Aranqueretta Shrivastava said, "I won't be discouraged, I'll fight until Lipstick Under My Burqa can be released in Cinemas in India, and as long as I can make movies, I'll continue to make 'female-led' films." ”
In the end, her victory was also an epoch-making mark in the history of Indian cinema.
Gorry Cindy said in the interview: "I didn't try to reinforce the female character because I was born that way. If there is anything degrading to women's personality, at this time, I will think about how to avoid it. And as a woman, it does take extra effort to be successful. “
Gorrie Cindy, Tencent Video can find her interview
The road is long and long. But they've always been on the road.