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Not enough films on women and Partition: Vidya Balan

Not enough films on women and Partition: Vidya Balan

The star of Begum Jaan talks about what makes the upcoming Partition drama different
10 Mar, 2017

In her next film Begum Jaan, Vidya Balan will be seen as a 'madam' who finds her brothel torn apart by the Pak-India Partition.

Saying that our knowledge of Partition is limited to what our textbooks tell us, Vidya shared that Begum Jaan will be an interesting story because "there are not many films on Partition and not on women especially as in what happened to them." Vidya said in an interview.

Also read: Vidya Balan just gushed about Pakistani dramas

In the film, half of the brothel is in Pakistan, while the other half lands up in India. The film depicts the women's struggle for their rights.

Poster of Begum Jaan, in which Vidya Balan stars as a brothel 'madam'
Poster of Begum Jaan, in which Vidya Balan stars as a brothel 'madam'

Vidya Balan also touched on violence in the film, saying it features a lot of “emotional and mental” violence, which was difficult for her to bring out convincingly.

“I am the madam of a brothel and the film is set in the Partition times and we are at the risk of losing our house, our space so there is lot of emotional, mental and sexual violence and not physical violence. It was difficult to do the film as I am doing it for the first time."

Vidya hopes that the film also changes people's perception about women working at brothels.

“People will think about how they think of women and prostitutes. A lot of things that I have felt strongly about have found voice in this film. I don’t know about that as it would be presumptuous of me to hope for such a big change.”

Begum Jaan comes out on April 14.

Comments

ARINDAMPRIN Mar 10, 2017 11:52am
its the remake of the Bengali film Rajkahini based on the bengal border division. You will clearly experience the supremacy of even bengali directors in making this kind of masterpiece.... and yeah the bengali regional film industry is bigger than whole pakistani one...the story remains same for Begumjaan as that was in Rajkahini , only the bengal border changes into punjab one ... and I think it will not release in pakistan... I have a fair idea about the cliche sensor board of pakistan... sorry about that but its true
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IMTIAZ ALI KHAN Mar 10, 2017 12:02pm
Beautiful woman with that eastern fire.
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Simba Mar 10, 2017 01:23pm
more films on the topic will only open up past wounds. I think there were quite a few master pieces - Tamas, Hey Ram, ...showed the brutality of human nature in the aftermath of partition. some films were even banned and highly censored
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Dipak singham Mar 10, 2017 04:18pm
We must know at least about what happen during partition & yes in the same time we should watch it as a film, entertainment purpose only.
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Syed Ali Mar 10, 2017 06:32pm
The film will be hit like Umrao Jan Ada.
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Asif A Shah Mar 10, 2017 08:52pm
Vidya Balan is a sensitive artist. I wish her success in her new movie Begum Jaan.
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Omar khan, dallas, tx Mar 10, 2017 09:25pm
Fine actress with beauty and talent.
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Gurpreet Singh Mar 10, 2017 10:21pm
@IMTIAZ ALI KHAN: She's actually South Indian - Tamil.
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worthless wealth Mar 10, 2017 10:23pm
Yes Vidya, I completely agree with your views! It is only bold and outspoken people like Mahesh Bhutt can deliver the goods. I know for sure that Bhutt saheb is all for humans and humanity, he is not for hatred, he is out to share love of brotherliness and friendship. He is not concerned with religion one follows so long one is human and shows in words and deeds humane qualities. India has no doubt covered lot many social, political, cultural. subjects via media films or motion pictures. I am sure you along with Bhutt Saheb, and other like minded people can and should do all that is possible to bring forth the ideas, views and opinion you hold on Partition, Women, Brothels, Prostitues Etc. through the media of films. This is the most pressing need of the time! I wish you all the best.
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Kumar Mar 10, 2017 11:48pm
@Gurpreet Singh What difference does it make. She is beautiful, period.
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Syed Chishti Mar 11, 2017 12:30am
You want to tell stories of Partition through the prism of history. Good approach, what about ongoing fallout of partition that both people of the divided sub-continent continue to face and experience. If Jinnah and Gandhi were on the same page? What happened after that? You can study details of that a nd build a much bigger TV and silver screen story. Try it , or let me know I will help you. Good luck.
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enigmA Mar 11, 2017 12:34am
IMO, Vidya Balan is a far more versatile actress then any in Bollyland today. She does'nt hesitate to speak her mind and does so intelligently and with graceful finesse. She's also a not shy about expressing her love and admiration for Pakistani productions and Pakistani actors. Wish Vidya all the best in Begum Jaan! Her character will be a challenging and complex one, yet one can be sure she'll kill it! BTW, we'd love to see Vidya in a Pakistani film : ))
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Pervezak52 Mar 11, 2017 12:36am
Partition....What partition? This word is a linguistic trap. Partition is done of a unit ,of a whole. India is the name given to a subcontinent, a geographical feature not a nation state.
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Gurpreet Singh Mar 11, 2017 02:13am
@Kumar: Of course it doesn't matter. I was just correcting the gentleman who thought that she was from Eastern India :)
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kerala Mar 11, 2017 06:17am
With all due respect to other comments; Vidya balan is from Kerala -Palakkad district. But she is always happy in being addressed as a bengali because of her famous film characters are from bengal background in parineeta &kahaani.And her sabhyasachi sarees..!She is a brilliant actress who picks well knitted characters from screenplays. She is a talented Indian actress who broadened bollywood heroines' horizon.
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Syed Mar 12, 2017 06:35am
You are looking different in this picture.
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SUNITa Mar 12, 2017 06:58am
@Gurpreet Singh It looks like you've misread what Imtiaz Ali Khan was stating - by "eastern" he means someone from the "EAST" vs "WEST" - don't think he meant "eastern" as in Bengal.
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