Mandi is a satirical comedy on politics and prostitution. The 1983 Hindi movie Mandi was directed by Shyam Benegal. Mandi is regarded as a milestone among the films based on social themes.
Mandi stars Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah and Smita Patil. The film is based on a classic Urdu short story Aanandi written by Pakistani writer Ghulam Abbas. The music of the film has been composed by Vanraj Bhatia. The 4 haunting songs have been rendered by Asha Bhonsle and Preeti Sagar.
The film revolves around the relationship between Rukminibai and Zeenat performed by Shabana Azmi and Smita Patil respectively. Rukminibai treats Zeenat like a daughter. When Zeenat wants to assert her freedom she feels threatened. She began to take care of Zeenat in order to keep under her control. In the process she alienates herself from all the women who work for her. Her strong personality disintegrates, and she breaks down. This marks the beginning of a reflective process of self-recovery. She once again falls into the cycle of selfish motherly control.
Also worth noticing is the role of the social worker Shanti Devi who is concerned about the moral degradation of the city. She fights for the unrelenting prostitutes to claim back their lost honor. The scene where Shanti Devi speaks about how a woman should be respected and not sold while addressing a crowd is an emotional scene in the movie. Her endeavors to persuade her sisters to give up the profession are very touching. And her interaction with the prostitutes are quite convincing.
The fate of the prostitutes hangs between the powerful forces in the film. On one side, there is the social-worker, whose attachment to their cause is hardly based on the struggles faced by women folk, and on the other, there is the powerful industrialist, Gupta who purchases the brothel in order to raze it down and so tries mislead them.
The movie points out how the forces surrounding these prostitutes are bereft of morality. It also shows how the prostitutes, are ultimately are forced to take the blame for 'moral degradation. They are thus coerced to leave the city and continue their struggle somewhere else.
The film won the 1984 National Film Award for Best Art Direction for Nitish Roy. Mandi was also selected for the Indian Panorama at Filmostav, Bombay 1984, and was invited to be screened at the Los Angeles Exposition (FILMEX), the Hong Kong International Film Festival 1984, and London Film Festival 1983.
Detailed online information about Mandi is provided in sitagita.com
|
