Review of film THAPPAD |
The hardcore Indian society, which sanctions all kinds of evil under the guise of our `sabhyata`, `maryada`: if you are an `adarsh bahu`, as Amrita played by Taapsee Pannu is, it is your job to check your elderly mother-in-law`s blood sugar levels, supervise the kitchen, escort your husband to the car, and pack lunch for him, as he busily moves off to earn a living. All with a smile, and good grace, every single day. Thappad resonates, as the director shows, without mincing any words, just how patriarchy is handed down from one generation to another, and women are equally complicit. After that fateful slap, in full view of family and guests, Amrita responds by self-soothing, and when that doesn`t work, by expecting her own family to support her but that is not `normal`. Domestic abuse is rampant across class and age, and Anubhav Sinha lays it out brilliantly. Pannu holds the film, but the effort she puts into her performance shows. There is a more welcome edge in the way her lawyer Sarao comes across, with her own dismissive spouse. Sinha makes an important, crucial film, which shows centuries of male entitlement for what it is. And how all it takes, from a woman who just wants self-respect, is a decision to say no, Not Even One Slap.
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