Womanly Tales

I have watched three versions of Devdas, the most recent one being a film with Abhay Deol in it and is called Dev D. The ‘original’ script tells the story of a man who indulges in the destructive power of regret & missed opportunities when the woman he loves marries another. It’s set in West Bengal and juxtaposes the idolatry lifestyles of the ‘well to do’ against the incessant ‘rat race’ for anybody who’s not. Love is the thread that keeps the story stitched together. Love between a man and a woman, love for oneself and unrequited love. In this case rich boy falls for working class girl and vice versa. One short tiff spins the lovers apart, with the working class girl marrying an older but richer man in an interesting mixture of spite, familial duty and self love. The boy however refuses to let her go. Driven by his love for her as well as for himself, his regret & his inability to account for his mistakes, he plots incessantly and unsuccessfully to get her back, all of which only ends with his death.
Yes, it’s quite a sordid, pathetic theme all around and certainly not my cup of tea which is why I didn’t get through the first version, delayed watching the second until it was available as a rerun on television – the only acceptable way to watch bad movies because you get to walk away and come back to the songs (which were good!). This third time around though, Dev D came highly recommended by Harneet and both Deepan and I are (Deepan more so) are fans of Abhay Deol, the lead actor. If you haven’t watched the first two versions, I would NOT recommend viewing them. If you haven’t watched Dev D I would strongly urge you to. It’s a fantastic film and the most honest remake in the history of Indian cinema.
I could list all the things that I liked (it’s too soon for love) about this film but I am not good with lists. Instead I am going to pick a few threads that resonated with me.
First.
This story is quite Shakespearean, in that it juxtaposes human feelings against societal tensions. Shakespeare was perhaps the inventor of modern day television soap operas! Such stories are an instant hit because they give audiences a moral argument (or two) to ponder about. For me, recently, I’ve been pondering about the moral boundaries for women in different roles – where do we inherit them from, who defines them and better still how do we get to redifine them? Just yesterday, I heard a Nigerian female author on the BBC WS [Interesting fact - she has written a feminist version of Chinua Achebe's Things fall apart! ] talk about the negative impact of Victorian morals on the freedom (and perhaps dignity) of Nigerian women. I recently posted in my blog, blowing up my admiration for Gandhari into as many words I could manage in a post… but not to digress too much
– let’s come back the pull of Devdas. Rich versus poor, love versus arranged, freedom versus duty — India could have easily taken Shakespeare to far greater heights than ever imaginable, had he exchanged his European context for an Indian one – - for where else do you find such rich fodder for societal tensions reflected in the mind boggling variety of languages, customs and traditions. The most sublime thing about India is there doesn’t really seem to be a threshold for how much you can add to the mix. Boundaries are defined everywhere and yet are always being crossed, renegotiated and redrawn. Danny Boyle said something to the effect in the context of slums where he said an entire city can be built or torn down in a week or a few days…and it’s true and tangible, not just for Indians but for anybody who gets an opportunity to interact with Indians.
When I reflect on what I miss most about India, my response is almost always color. If you haven’t experienced our textile repertoire, you’re seriously missing out. I am no fashionista but instead the colors, weaves, & prints in Indian fabrics to me reflects this wonderfully old and yet ever changing intricate & complex society. [The 'United Colors of Benetton' as a fashion theme is a downright failure in an Indian context - it's too simplistic and false]. Ok let’s digress back to Dev D, shall we? [Or would you rather not? LOL]
What I find most annoying about Devdas is the main protagonist and the fact that he’s rich and can AFFORD the time and resources to waste away his life. And I am not alone. This is probably the most popular draw for most people who watch the film because most of us can’t afford either time nor resources to carry through with stupid, self-indulgent, and designed to fail plans. But then again maybe he couldn’t help it, you might respond. Maybe he was punishing himself in the only way he knew how, you might empathize.
Bah!!! That’s my response to you. The fact that he was rich and didn’t have to earn a living for himself or for anyone else is gave him freedoms that you and I probably secretly crave. Look at the roaring business of our tabloids and the attention we pay the ‘Rich & Famous’ and you’ll agree that as rats we’re in a race NOT of our choosing. But for Devdas and his ‘kom’ of the rich & famous, there are choices. [Oooooo my wonderful husband is playing some buena vista and I can't help be distracted....].
OK, back to my righteous indignation here a la Mayawati — These rich folks have a choice. They sit on that lovely wall Humpty Dumpty sits on and can choose to renegotiate a societal norm and YET history tells us they do so driven purely for immediate gratifications. Most of them have not redefined boundaries to help the rats take a break unless you’ve met Mayawati perhaps [Yes, I want to digress, please!]. Here’s a corrupt, power hungry outlaw of a politician [female, at that] who has openly announced her intention to be the Prime Minister of India. It is election time [Please join my group in facebook to secure right to vote for Non resident indians and tell us how we might go about doing this..] in India and the metro educated rats who’re on the cusp of ‘making it big’ all hold their breath (all the while ignoring to go vote, I might add) as they see Mayawati rouse a huge vote bank of those not so priviledged and those who’re exhausted of being rats in a race with little to no choice — In a democracy where popularity is all that counts, the reality is that there are a lot more rats than there are Ambanis (top 100 of the world’s richest men). Mayawati in her best light is a vote for the downtrodden, the dalits and untouchables (yes, we have those in India!), who for years pre and post independence have been at the mercy of the priviledged. It is an unfolding drama and don’t be too quick to take that popcorn break because it might be materialize into reality sooner than we think (or mentally allow).
And, I’m all for it. We need a Mayawati to highlight our collosal failure as a democracy to bring equal rights and opportunities to all citizens regardless of our inherited mai-baap culture! Yes, she doesn’t give me any confidence that she has a way of addressing these inequalities – - her approach I feel will be to by sheer force manage a reversal of power structures because she knows no better [and 'we' are to blame for that as well]. Such dramatic upheavals in our political clout might release the pressure of our ‘chalta hai’ attitudes and give leaders with new & creative ideas a chance to break through our aging political landscape.
Second,
Devdas is a Bengali story, Dev D is a Punjabi one. Above, I hope I’ve given you enough clues to India’s landscape to understand that a state located in the east of India will be culturally & emotionally completely different from it’s equivalent (in statehood) located in the west (or the south/central/north, for that matter). And that’s the only lining of hope that makes Dev D so much more watchable. Yes, Dev D is very authentic to the remorse & sordid self defeating ways of the main protagonist Devdas BUT with a difference at the end. [No, I won't spoil it for you who haven't watched it yet.].
This difference however lets me ponder so more on a thread that I so enjoy — the cultural make up behind an individual’s actions. We are who we are – NOT just individuals (as the Americans will believe) but as communities and our collective inheritance can sometimes override any individual choices we make. Read Outliers to understand this in a way that is gentle with American sensibilities. [Given the downturn with the economy Deepan and I have been selecting books to sell on Amazon (I love this notion of an online bazaar where anybody small or big can set shop and sell stuff...) -- Outliers got sold in a week! Yes, so don't buy the book, borrow it from your local library. It's not a keeper]
The Bengali version of Devdas is very much a sentimental with an obsessive fondness for reliving the past just as it was [Remember the softly delivered criticism for Bhansali's Devdas [Version no 2] was over how Ms Rai playing Paro danced with Ms Dixit playing Chandramukhi and how it was factually incorrect of the times]. In Devdas, a Bengali can look at literature & analyse its method & structure. In Devdas, a Bengali can indulge with his heart too — feel it beat a bit faster for the romance that unfolds, empathize with the helplessness of life at the hands of destiny (Kaun kambhakt bardash karne ke liye peeta hai?…btw searching for this famous Devdas dialougue, I came across a really funny post on favorite film dialogues by Mithun ) and also (if I may add without in any way trying to insult or offend) vicariously relive a time of cultural supremacy.
The Punjabis though will have none of this. They instead have a naturally optimistic and ‘can do’ attitude to life. Subtlety is a waste of time. Sentimentality with the past is another waster. Dev D is for them a man with a purpose (however deluded), someone indulged, spoiled and reproached by his family (like only Punjabi families can with all their pet names — Devdas is Dev D, Chandramukhi is Chanda and Paro is actually Parminder!!!) though with a sure dose of practicality (they tell him he’s good for nothing as many times as they can) — and everything they do is underlined with some hope. This is what makes this version of Devdas so much better viewing plus my third and final thread (only because I want to stop this post from becoming a novella…)
Third,
Remakes – I’ve talked about them previously here in this blog — We don’t do remakes at all in the Indian film industry. We dub well, we’ll even copy quite well but a remake? No, I can’t remember a single example of a remake that qualifies to be a ‘remake’ in the true, honest sense of the word… until Dev D. This movie is about India today. It takes Devdas – the story of self-destructive, indulgent ways and puts in in a context you and I can relate to. We can be Dev D, Paro or Chanda. These societal tensions (rich vs poor, freedom vs norms, love vs arranged) is not a thing of the past. These are dominant genes passed on to all of the approximately 53000 babies born every day in India. [Based on census yr 2001]
The societal behaviours and tools have of course changed. We share information more with mobile phones today. We share information with not just who we know but just about anybody who is on or can get access to our network instantly. Bullock carts and trains have given way for cars. A casual girlfriend empathizes with Dev D for not having a car but travelling in a bus in Delhi! Again, a masterful stroke of remaking Devdas in today’s context. [Contrast that attitude with the fact that the British launched their Olympic journey on a London 'Double decker'!].
Deepan looked at me post the film and said — what is this, the exposed underbelly of sex in North India? And again it reflects a shifting social norm but yet it’s not as simple as that. Perhaps what’s different about today is that we can talk about sex & ‘hidden practices’ which perhaps was in the past alluded to with our songs and gyrating hips! Another break away from the past is the freedom for a film maker to not target a ‘family’ audience for his films. Dev D is not meant for grandparents, parents, teenagers and toddlers to have a date over. How many creative talents have we sacrificed in our quest to serve this ‘family’ audience, I wonder?
Dev D is a film for the young and again there’s a strong & emerging theme of catering to this ‘new generation’ who are open & straightforward in their complete disregard of boundaries itself. India is no different. The youth there are synthesizing global norms, juxtaposed against localized, cultural norms and dealing with it as best they can.
Last but not least, I also quite enjoyed the silent tribute & mockery of the Bhansali version that features itself in Dev D. More so this is used to really launch where and how this film will depart from its predecessors. It’s a beautifully executed break, one that makes this film reverberate the true reason for living – actionable hope!
Go and watch this film – it’s so worth it!