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Audio Format: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Video Format: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1 Languages: Hindi Subtitles: English Region Code: ALL Year Made: 2001 Running Time: 165
Bawander is based on a true story, a shocking gang rape of a young married woman in Rajistan in the early 1980s. It deals with the culture that still exists in a chauvinistic, feudal, caste system in modern India. This powerful story adapted by Jagmohan and his team of writers, is set in rural Rajasthan where, in spite of being illegal, the archaic tradition of child marriages still prevail.
In Bawander the heroine Sanwari (played brilliantly by Nandita Das) joins the national movement of 'Saathin' which hopes to stamp out such social evils as child marriages. Her courage in fighting this evil and her encouragement of the other village women to oppose these evils, raises the ire the upper class landlords. They extract their revenge by brutally gang raping her in front of her husband Sohan (Raghuvir Yadav).
But even, so cruel a treatment, does not stop Sanwari. Instead of hiding her shame, she takes the village men by surpise by deciding to fight for justice. She gets raped all over again, this time, by the so called justice system that is so corrupted by sexim, chauvinism and political corruption, that the whole excercise becomes a meaningless charade.
She starts out as an innocent and naive woman, unknowingly used as a pawn in the political power game between the State and Central Governments. But she learns and grows during the process, maintaining her courage and her dignity as a woman, and changes from being a rape victim to a rape activist.
The growing feeling of utter helplessness, frustration and suffering but underlined with unfailing determination is so poignant and is so touchingly emoted by Nandita Das, it leaves the audience with no choice but to empathize with her. Raghuvir Yadav supports Nandita Das extremely well, mostly being the silent spectator, offering her his strength and faith, his pain for his wife's suffering so apparent on his face that words were not required.
Jagmohan Mundra has done excellent work bringing out the very best in cast and dealing with delicate issues like rape and even masturbation very subtly and elegantly without the usual histrionics that is typical of most Indian movies.
Nandita Das won the Best Actress Award in Santa Monica Film Festival. The picture won a Special Jury Award for Best Foreign Film in Houston International Film Festival. It won the Best Picture Award in both San Jose and Bermuda International Film Festival.
It is a movie well worth watching and the audience is sure to carry away memories that they will not forget that easily!
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