It is so exciting that the reincarnation of Deepa Mehta's Water has been getting the accolades it deserves!
It has been a long, hard road for Water. The film was initially shelved in 2000 after Hindu fundamentalists blocked filming and caused extensive damage to the sets of the movie with the Uttar Pradesh government pretty much watching the riots from the sidelines. This incident goes on India's wall of shame! Deepa is a fantastic director and the initial cast for Water included acting powerhouses Shabana Azmi and Nandita Das. But the original ensemble didn't persist when Deepa decided to remake the film 4 years later in Sri Lanka. The new cast includes Seema Biswas, Lisa Ray and John Abraham.
Water is an amazing movie - revolving around the centuries-old tradition in India of turning women into non-entities once their husbands die. Seeing the women with shaven heads, draped in white saris and walking around devoid of emotion evokes familiar images of a conservative India. And contrary to fundamentalist hindu opinion, this movie does not insult Mahatma Gandhi! Rather, it just portrays quite effectively why conservative India needed (and still needs) Gandhi's progressive thinking.
And Yay for Canada for sending Water to the Oscars!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment