The film stars Kajol, Tanvi Azmi and Mithila Palkar, and revolves around a dysfunctional family of three women and their unconventional life choices. The movie follows the journey of three generations of women who interact on a deeper level and find out disturbing details of their past when the eldest of the three, Nayan, falls into a coma and her daughter & granddaughter decide to contribute to her biography in making. Each of the three ladies is plagued by the males in their lives or has experienced difficulties as a result of the other.
The protagonist in the story was a female who wanted to pursue her career in writing and was very passionate about it. She married to a guy who was supportive of her writings but the lady’s mother-in-law was against her decision to focus on her career. Although she got great recognition and appreciation through her writings but as she was not good in doing house hold chores her mother-in-law was upset from her. That is why she decided to leave her in laws house and separated from her husband. She took her children with herself and raised them as a single mother. Children’s life without father was miserable but they coped up with that.
The protagonist’s second husband used to sexually harass the girl child because of which the children separated from their mother as well. Masha, Anu's daughter, describes how, despite her mother's tendency to be too protective, Anu's colourful character led to her being ridiculed at school as is often mentioned throughout the film, Anu is also separated from her mother, who is now in coma, for the same reason.
Although the story showed family problems but the social issue raised here was very well portrayed. It shows the struggle a woman had to go through if she wants to pursue her career instead of focusing on home making. By the conclusion, all three ladies have realised how significant each of them is to their lives.
What is the story based on?
The movie Tribangha is based on the lives of single mothers and women in professions. Life of working women in a country like India where people think culturally and emotionally more, opposes the opinion of women having a career. India has from past several years a patriarchal society where women is being seen and expected to be dependent on men and if they try to make opinions and choices their voice is shunned. With the passage of time, we see development in our country and many men supporting their wives or women of their family or women in general to have a career and opportunities to grow.
But still women have to seek moral support from men to believe in themselves. Without men’s approval it is hard for many women to get their choice of work done. Societal pressure, disapproval from in laws, taking care of children and lack of education are the major reasons of women not being able to have a career. From the day a girl is born, her education is planned in such an order that limits the scope of good career options and the boy child gets more opportunities for the obvious reasons, when these girls grow up, they are expected to earn less than the guy they are marrying which is not only a societal pressure on women but on men as well.
And if they are earning more or even less than their to be husbands, they are expected and are asked to leave their jobs because who will take care of children then? And as soon as they stop earning the pressure goes to the men and they become the sole earner of the family and the poor women gets dependent on their husbands. Who likes to be dependent on anyone in this society? People know the cruelty they have to suffer, if the person they are dependent on takes advantages of it.
Asking for money, asking for permissions and approvals to get their work done is liked by none but when you are dependent on someone financially then you must do it all. The story talks about single mothers as well. The protagonist in this movie had to divorce her husband to build her career. In the movie the single mother was well established and was able to provide her kids with all the basic amenities, but is it enough to have a good life. Only if husband of the protagonist would have supported her career choice, divorce would not have happened.
But the women were expected to take care of the house instead of her passion, she was expected to do house chores and take care of the family. Isn’t this the role of everyone instead of just a woman? Even the children are affected by divorced parents. Living with one and leaving another parent, making a rock-hard choice in such a tender age can mentally affect the child as well.
How the issue can be solved?
It is a tough question to reply to but its never impossible. If the country is developing and people are adapting new technologies then why cannot they change their minds and thinking. Most basic solutions are to aware people not just men but women as well to get education, to speak up for themselves, to know about the laws and not to let anyone decide for them. One should not let this patriarchy rule them.
Many government policies providing education should be implemented properly and should be in reach of people, because education plays the biggest role in developing minds and with mind development comes modern thinking.
Acceptance should be there in men and they must be supportive to the women of their families. The campaigns to empower women are being run in the world should be supported, the campaign helps a lot in spreading awareness about problems suffered by women, its implications and how it can be corrected.
The taboo that being a single mother is a curse, women focusing on their careers is a shame and they should stick to house needs to be eliminated, people should discuss about it in their day-to-day conversations.
Submitted by:
Khushi Vashisth
Law Student at Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National Law University, Sonipat
Comments