Bollywood & Society: Hum Saath Saath Hain
Hum Saath Saath Hain, a 1999 Bollywood drama by Sooraj Barjatya is under spotlight for the purpose of this opinion piece and will act as a standard point of measurement for an analysis depicting the parallel growth of Bollywood and the Indian society.
We, as the audience for Bollywood, still enjoy some movies that act as drivers of sexism. Regardless of what definition of feminism you are following today, some Bollywood movies from the past and present will reluctantly yet tirelessly make you cringe. But we have grown in many ways in the past two decades. I was three when Hum Saath Saath Hain sprung up as the popular hand-in-hand family drama right at the exordium of the 21st century. Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham wasn’t too far away, but Hum Saath Saath Hain continued to hold its own charm for times to come as it certainly does till today, every Sunday on our TV Screens.
From 1999 till present day, we have all been a part of a journey that reflects the movement of our society, sometimes from worse to worst but mostly and as I am an optimist, from helpless to hopeful cinema. Some specific points follow, but before that I must mention how het up I am at the cringes made on 90s Indian cinema - “Yeh toh sach hai ki bhagwan hai'' from HSSH is an iconic song undeserving of being demeaned in the name of modernity, this is how we roll in India and I am proud of certain aspects shown in the movie. For starters, the big loving family, India’s USP. We don’t need to hate our relatives because there’s an exploding aunty culture always on the lookout for rishtas. The idea of a big group of people always having your back is a true blessing, sure it is not cool to be in favour of joint families in 2020 - still, not a good reason to demean it. Additionally, the fact that the father, Alok Nath understood the sons better than the mother yet did not overrule her decision however harmful it was - a fantastic depiction of involved and caring patriarchs in the family system, something that Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, despite hitting the silver screen two years later, failed to nail. The songs and dancing, colours and clothes - lovely, ofcourse, very bollywood, very Indian and deserving of our fondness. The fact that the young couples did not require sex to keep their excitement going for each other, excellent and a much needed/often repeated phrase in modern-day therapy sessions. Another very impressive part of the movie was the fact that despite the story revolving around a Hindu family, the movie did its bit to show diversity. The handful of Muslim characters are often tagged as ‘forced’ but I personally believe showing an affectionate, inter-religion bond via even a fraction of the ensemble in a popular saga sends across a message much stronger than a hundred written pieces, everything holds its own audience.
Unfortunately, as much as I adore the movie, Hum Saath Saath Hain was not all things rosy. There are some parts to the movie that poke the emancipated woman inside me. Even though we have survived a Kabir Singh just recently, it is a good idea to dive deep into the storyline of a box office hit from the late 90s to understand sexism and its casual existence. Following is a comparison of some questionable segments from Hum Saath Saath Hain along with relevant scenes from recent cinema that hold a charming potential to reinforce my optimism in Bollywood and our society.
DUTIES
Cut 1:
‘Vakil Sahib’ or the family lawyer and the matriarch's brother happily pronounces at the dining table how a happy family reflects in situations where the ladies and daughters of the house lovingly serve food to everyone. While there is constant discussion about the men’s professional ambition in the movie, the underlying goal for women is always tied only to home and marriage. Why?
Cut 2: Piku (2015)
An old man played by Amitabh Bachhan in the 2015 movie, Piku, often refers to marriage being an unfair system for women in India. He makes brilliantly progressive remarks throughout the movie. One such comment is his take on men’s demands where he mentions that after marriage men only want women to serve them - food during the day and sex at night. This scene 16 years after HSSH, shows how Bollywood started to put light on the unequal gender roles in our society.
2. AGE & GENDER
Cut 1:
The movie opens up with everyone wishing the mighty couple played by Alok Nath and Reema Lagoo on their 25th wedding anniversary. Then comes running in Sangeeta, their daughter who already has a 3-4 year old daughter herself. Sangeeta can also be seen referring to Salman Khan as ‘bhaiya’ in the movie which goes to show that she was younger to him. So if Salman was 24, Sangeeta was 23? So she got married at what, 18?
Cut 2: Angrezi Medium (2020)
A loving and protective father, Irrfan Khan does everything in his ability to support his 18-year old’s daughter’s college admission in the United Kingdom. Although education and marriage are all personal choices along with the attached timelines. But going by the traditional approach depicted in HSSH and the fact that Salman’s character, a son of the family, is internationally educated, a stark contrast can be seen in the depiction of young daughters’ lives in Bollywood across 21 years.
3. HONEYMOONS
Cut 1:
All the youngsters in the family surround the new bride, Tabu and ask her where she wants to honeymoon. Before she could reply, her husband, Mohnish Bahl says that everyone should come along for the honeymoon otherwise the trip is cancelled. Everyone revolts and tries to make him understand what a honeymoon means, but it becomes a joke in no time and the bride herself suggests the family’s village for the vacation.
Cut 2: Queen (2014)
Kangana embarks solo on her pre-booked honeymoon as her groom turns her down at the last minute. She decides to make the journey to keep away from the distressing circumstance and absorb the twist that’s come about in her life overnight. Much like Kangana in the movie, every couple needs a short time off from their regular lives to understand each other and the milestone they’ve reached. Moreso, if the marriage had been arranged by their parents. Bollywood seems to have gotten a taste for this concept 15 years later.
4. DREAMS & DEDICATION
Cut 1:
The new bride is now pregnant and her prospective sister-in-laws played by Karishma Kapoor, a college student and Sonali Bendre, a practicing doctor, leave their work and stay at home with the to-be-mother. This is shown in a good light so as to display the shared affection in the family. However, 2 decades into the 21st century, as a viewer I notice the different benchmarks set for men and women in the movie. While the men, rather boys of the family are praised for their ambition and dedication towards their career, women are praised on the basis of the level of sacrifices they make for the family.
Cut 2: Panga (2020)
As she is set to re-enter the sports world where she was once a master, Kangana’s character, the mother of a 7-year-old in Panga, leaves her house and moves to another city. Her husband and son take care of themselves, while they are shown to struggle with basic household chores, the movie depicts, in all confidence, that women do not need to leave their dreams behind in order to lead a happy family life.
5. THE PREGNANCY PRESSURE
Cut 1:
Shakti Kapoor, who is the friend of the big family, is unmarried and often teased about it. In response to one such tease, Shakti says that he has made a deal with Tabu (who is recently married to Shakti’s childhood friend), that he will get married only when she gets pregnant. An extremely fun-filled pressure to produce a child is hence placed on the couple.
Cut 2: Dil Dhadakne Do (2015)
As Priyanka Chopra’s character is not happy in her marriage in Dil Dhadakne Do, she takes contraception pills to refrain from conceiving. Although a woman does not need to have any reason to use contraception, the fact that Priyanka was emancipated enough to not flow with the societal pressures of having a child, that too one that was often fondly presumed to be male offspring, is a great depiction of the progress we made 16 years hence.
6. THE HOUSEWIFE CULTURE
Cut 1:
Salman Khan’s love interest in the movie, Sonali Bendre is a doctor by profession. When they get engaged, Sonali’s father’s character played by Satish Shah can be seen exclaiming how he is not sure how doctors turn out as housewives. Sonali’s character either plays shy, serves food or acts like a doctor in the movie - not sure why she would be expected to drop the only productive thing she did.
A victim of domestic abuse after her husband slaps her, Tapsee Pannu’s character in Thappad, makes a series of changes in her life. In one scene, she can be seen speaking to her mother-in-law, stating how she never dreamt of becoming a housewife when she was little. Her dream was always to become someone popular or powerful. But she chose to become a housewife. In good light or bad, this scene very strongly put forth the other side of becoming a housewife, the one that comes as a reaction to the constant glorification of the ‘do-it-all’ women, the ones who sacrifice and live for the family’s dreams, often by crushing their own.