The Film Charulatha by Satyajit Roy - Essay Example

Charulatha Satyajit Roy was one of the most accomplished Indian film makers, and the Oscar he won for lifetime achievement vouches for this fact. Though Pather Panchali is recognized as his best work, this credit went to the movie perhaps because of the limited sensibility of his audience rather than a lack of cinematic style he displayed in Charulatha. He explores some aspects of upper class women in colonial India in this movie, Charulata (subtitled as The Lonely Wife). The film depicts cultural emergence of modern woman in the higher classes of British colonial India. Satyajit Ray shows lot of sensitivity as he portrays the new face of Indian women whose self identities are moulded by traditional expectations. In the film the heroine is portrayed as an intelligent woman who writes poetry. Her aesthetic sense of life is captured beautifully throughout the movie; but unfortunately she becomes relegated to the life of a caged bird in her palatial house. In the opening sequence of the movie we see Charulatha moves from one window to other to watch the activities of outside world, using opera glasses. The scene clearly shows how curious and keen she is to know the world beyond the walls of her house. This clearly marks a definite deviation from the concepts of upper class women in the 19th century and the emergence of a modern woman. The utter lack of sensibility of the elite class towards their women is manifest throughout each thread of the masterly theme that weaves the plot of the story. Colonial India in the 19th century was trapped in a vicious hub enforced by religious superstitions and social obscurantism. A few Hindu priests, who had mean objectives, exercised an overwhelming influence on the minds of people. Idolatry and polytheism helped to reinforce their position. The British, who established their political control in India by the middle of the 18th century, were a bit reluctant to interfere in the religious and social affairs of the country due to political reasons as they feared antagonism. They estimated that a divided society would pose less threat to their domination. Still the British influence on Indian society was tremendous. The trend, especially within the elite class, inclined towards an ardent drive for conforming to British norms. The social set up was mired in injustice, the backward society torn between the turmoil of colonialist objectives of the British and internal strife, depicting a sorry a state of affairs. Divided into four castes, i.e. Brahmans (priest class), Kshtriyas (warrior class), Vaisyas (merchant class) and Shudras (untouchables), the social conditions were very depressing. People from priest and warrior class formed elite in the colonial period. Very rich merchants were also considered as rich. The elite society during this time was following a patriarchal family system where the father was the head of the family, who enjoyed supreme power and authority over other members of the family He was the breadwinner for the entire family, and therefore commanded unchallenged supremacy. In lonely wife, Bhupati is the head of the family and he supports his family by running a printing press. Though he loves his wife, he hardly finds time to spare for his wife. However, he senses her poetic talents, and asks his cousin, Amal, to encourage her cultural interests. Women from elite family in colonial era were generally given lower position and were subordinate to men in all walks of life. Upper class women especially were the victims because in economical terms they were completely dependent on men unlike the lower class women, some of whom enjoyed a little bit of freedom as they were allowed to do menial work and earn their livelihood. Generally, upper class women during this time also were deprived of any right on property. However, the gifts of jewelry, ornaments, garments and similar presents made to the bride on the occasion of her marriage were considered her property. Female’s role confined to giving blind obedience to husband, rearing children and do the chores so she could expect to follow her husband to the next world. This situation has been very subtly reflected in the movie so artistically by Satyajit Ray. Any spectator who possesses the ability to connect the nuances the movie maker so deftly interlaces the plot with, can understand the movie’s relevance as a staunch social commentary. Finally the movie is also a portrayal of how a woman is exploited and discarded in the society. Her main responsibility is to bring up children. The children in the family are supposed to follow all the instructions of the parents. All the male children were given very good education but the education of the girl child, generally, neglected. In this film, Satyajit Ray depicts an exceptional case In Lonely Life where the heroine is well educated and has interests in poetry, literature and arts. Moreover, we find a progressive husband in Bhupati who sensing her poetic talents asks his cousin, Amal, to encourage her cultural interests. Amal manages to provide a vent to her pent up emotions and makes good the void she felt, by extending to her the much needed intellectual companionship she lacked from her husband. His attention and the consolation she finds in him gradually forge an intimate relationship between them. This shows how neglected and lonely upper class women were in the 19th century in the colonial British India. Generally, in all sections of the people including the elite in the 19th century British colonial India, the birth of a girl was unwelcome, her marriage a burden and her widowhood inauspicious. Instead of treating as equal they were treated as inferior citizen. Attempts to kill infants at birth were not unusual. Often the marriage was a device to escape social ignominy. An eighty five year old Brahman in Bengal had as many as two hundred wives, the youngest being just eight years old. Still when her husband dies, she is expected to perform ‘sati’ which is the burning the widow alive on her husband’s pyre. British rule in India though exploitative in nature, has benefited the elite to some extent. The British, especially after the revolt of 1857, were in need of a loyalty of a section of people in order to flex the muscles of the big eastern empire. So they became more liberal towards the elites of the Indian society and gave emphasize to English education. The elite or upper class received modern education and started to blindly imitate western way of life. Many noticeable influences can be observed in terms of dress, food habits and language. It is funny to note that many people from the upper class, especially English educated, sported suits even during summer perhaps without realizing that it was a dress meant for cold climate. Another significant influence was observed in language; the elite of the society who studied in English medium schools, started using English as a medium of communication and started treating it as status symbol. Though ultimately it has helped Indians to a great extent, as a social comment relevant to that time, Ray’s film can be seen as a classic example of how a movie can reflect the social conditions of a particular era. To achieve this, using a dramatic story, is nothing short of mastery of the art for which the accolades Ray received are well deserved. Works Cited The film ‘Charulata’ (The Lonely Wife) directed by Satyajit Ray, 1964 Read More