Godmother (1999)
Starring: Shabana Azmi, Milind Gunaji, Govind Namdeo, Nirmal Pandey, Raima Sen
Director: Vinay Shukla
Music Director: Vishal
Synopsis: The typical political corruption saga gets a feminist angle this time around
Reviewed by: Omar Khan

 

The movie swept no fewer than six major National Film Awards, including yet another Best Actress award for Shabana Azmi in the title role.

The story opens in the poverty-stricken countryside, where corruption permeates every level of society. Rambha's husband, Veeram, commits a murder while defending a fellow member of his community and is forced to flee. Help arrives through members of his Mer biradiri, whose network not only enables him to evade justice but also introduces him to the murky world of local politics.

Veeram enjoys considerable influence amongst his people, and ambitious politicians are only too eager to exploit his popularity for their own gain. Initially, he fails to realise that he is little more than a convenient pawn in the local Member of Parliament's political game, valued only for as long as he remains useful. By the time Veeram understands that he is entirely expendable, he has already wandered too deeply into the quicksand of political intrigue. His inevitable downfall leaves Rambha to fend not only for herself but also for the ideals that her husband once believed in.

The film has already established Rambha as a woman of quiet intelligence and remarkable instinct. Whenever Veeram faced a difficult decision, it was invariably to her that he turned for advice. Although uneducated, she possesses a natural political acumen, and it takes her very little time to understand the brutal realities of a world dominated by corrupt, power-hungry men. She quickly learns that survival depends less upon education than upon instinct, courage and an ability to outthink one's opponents.

The film's greatest strength lies in its performances.

Shabana Azmi is superb, delivering yet another commanding performance in one of the richest roles of her distinguished career. Rambha is a wonderfully written character—strong, intelligent and resourceful without ever sacrificing her humanity—and Azmi inhabits the role completely. It is also one of the most substantial female roles to emerge from mainstream Indian cinema in many years.

Veeram is equally well portrayed, while the actor playing the manipulative politician captures the oily opportunism of his character to perfection.

Unfortunately, not everything works quite so well.

The film loses much of its momentum once Rambha's son enters the story. His performance is painfully weak and the narrative begins to wander, causing what had been a compelling political drama to drift towards mediocrity. Matters are hardly helped by the obligatory synchronised disco number, which feels hopelessly out of place and does little beyond interrupting the film's rhythm.

The final act never quite lives up to the promise of the opening sections. Although the songs are generally pleasant enough, they frequently bring the narrative almost to a standstill. Like much mainstream Indian cinema, the film cannot resist the familiar ingredients of slow-motion violence, dramatic background music and songs inserted at regular intervals.

Yet these commercial trappings should not be mistaken for superficiality.

Unlike much of the self-conscious "art" cinema that often mistakes earnestness for profundity, this film tackles serious social issues—including honour killing and political corruption—through an accessible commercial format capable of reaching a far wider audience. In that respect, it may ultimately prove more valuable than many critically acclaimed art-house productions whose worthy messages rarely travel beyond a limited audience.

Perhaps the film's greatest handicap is the extraordinary weight of expectation created by its six National Awards. Such accolades inevitably lead one to anticipate an undisputed masterpiece, and in truth the film never quite reaches those exalted heights.

Nevertheless, it remains an intelligent, powerful and socially relevant piece of commercial cinema—one that demonstrates just how effective popular filmmaking can be when it chooses to engage seriously with important issues.