Shakti

A majority of Indian Film makers are followers of Manu, though they would deny this when told so.And I am not talking about their love for castes and casteism now.

It is an irrefutable fact the portrayal of women in our cinema would have made Manu proud -that is if at all such a character existed. Women are either deified or glorified- Gods are pleased and reside in that household where women are honoured- or shown as seductresses- It is the nature of women to seduce men- or shown always as subservient to men and depend on them for everything throughout their life- her father protects her in childhood, her husband protects her in youth and her son protects her in her old age.

The last mentioned, in fact, appears verbatim as part of a dialogue in a movie released just a decade ago and in which a female lead actor plays a dual role. I am not going to examples for each ‘sloka’ of Manu as depicted in our movies as this would consume reams of pages. But in general, the true power of a woman is not shown and what are shown are the greatness of motherhood, the sacrifice of a wife, the ‘affection’ of a sister.. In short, women are symbols of love and affection while men who are meant to control them are majestic and valorous.

There have been some exceptions here and there and one of the exceptions is the song of the day. Not often does one find a female lead character ‘phoo-phooing’ the male ego.. Though this song does not specifically target or attack the male ego, I said that due to a reason. The hero of the movie was/is known for his misogynistic dialogues in almost all his movies. Moreover, if anybody(a lady in particular) challenges him or even is seen to be challenging him, that person would be subject to verbal attacks and even physical attacks by his ‘followers’ and ‘fans’. And this movie came in the year 1979 when that ‘star’ had already turned ‘super’. There is even more significance to this year as this was the end of the ‘70s, a decade when conservatism was being hailed as modernism and ‘women’s lib’ movement had begun to sprout in our country, but was hardly seen in movies (‘AvaL Appadiththan’ was different but here too the director veered towards ‘sentimentalism’, the bane of Tamizh Cinema. This movie calls for a separate post).

By no stretch of imagination should it be misconstrued that the movie from which the song of the day is taken spoke about ‘women’s independence’. It was a movie with all commercial elements and the story revolved around the hero only. But this song per se, is different in that it dares the hero who refuses to give an interview to the lady scribe. Perhaps the director had streaks of modern thoughts in him and decided to show that at least for 4 and half minutes.

‘Ada Poyyaa Poyyaa Ulagam Perisu..Nee Oru podi Dabba..Indha Pena Perisappa’ from ‘Dharma Yuddham’ , in my opinion is an embodiment of an ideal woman who cares less for people who insult her in particular and womanhood in general. Yes, the song revolves around a scribe and also reiterates that the ‘pen is mightier than the sword’ and the reference to the ‘Modern Woman’ appears only towards the end. But I feel, the lyricist M.G.Vallabhan, who was a scribe himself, used ‘writing’ as a metaphor.

Sample these :

I am the mirror of Time/I am a pioneer/I am eternal/ I have knowledge/I don’t care.

The musical part (and this includes the tune and the orchestration) needs a very special mention because one feels the bubbling energy throughout the song. The flip side is the voice and it would have been nice if somebody else had rendered this song as I find Shailaja’s voice to be very immature with a questionable diction.

Set in the minor scale, the composition flows like a beautiful stream. As always, the percussion is used wisely and brilliantly. See how it says ‘Go back Go back’ in the Pallavi, jumps and dances in the second half of the first interlude after being virtually absent in the first half, how it changes the pattern in the CharaNams, how it switches to folksy beats in the first half of the second interlude, how it goes with military precision towards the end of the same interlude, and how it goes in faster mode in the third interlude.

Has any other composer used each and every instrument efficiently, effortlessly and brilliantly to not only suit the occasion but also with heightened musicality? Listen to the funny sound which is ubiquitous in the song, symbolising sarcasm. How about the strings in the beginning which plays in the higher octave showing the woman power? Or the sax which follows giving a ‘clarion call’? Or the flute which goes in a circle in the first interlude or the shehnai and the sax in the first interlude? Aren’t these giving a feeling of auspiciousness?

Or the South Eastern instrument and the electric guitar in the second interlude? Or the flute and the strings in the same interlude which go to the major scale and revert to the minor scale? Don’t these show the flexibility and the range of knowledge a modern woman has?

Or the higher octave strings, the shehnai , the sax, the electric guitar and a host of instruments in the third interlude which depict versatility?

I am the mirror of Time/I am a pioneer/I am eternal/ I have knowledge/I don’t care.

Applies to the Woman power.. Applies to the Composer too..

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