Ja Simran Jee Le Apni Zindagi! Maratha Mandir Cinema Is A Refreshing Short Film

Maratha Mandir Cinema: Even if you are someone who hates Bollywood it is unlikely that your life is untouched by it. Hindi cinema and it's larger than life love stories have often been criticised for normalising things like stalking and not valuing consent. But in a country where people are still not free to marry for love, stories like Raj and Simran's touch the viewers and give them hope. It is not without a reason that Mumbai's iconic Maratha Mandir held a record for screening the film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ) for 1,274 weeks. Sarika and Swanand Kirkire's short film Maratha Mandir Cinema is a tribute to the iconic onscreen love stories. And shows how this hope of a better life, where they are loved and respected, makes it easier to go by the drudgery for women of Kamathipura, Mumbai's well know red light area.

The little over 12-minute long film opens with Sarika as a middle-aged sex worker who is attending to her regular customer played by Swanand Kirkire. Sex between them is a commercial transaction sans any emotion or passion. As they are unable to climax she catches Kirkire looking out of the window checking out a much younger woman and we meet 'Simran' played by Tanvi Ravindra Sangvai. She has been kept away from the trade and the pimp is certainly eying her now. Sarika is overly protective of this young girl and we learned reason for that later.

Simran's life revolves around the movie DDLJ and she watches it every day at Maratha Mandir. She finds hope in the film and waits for true love to embrace her life. We learn that the film will only run for two more shows. So, with no DDLJ in Kamathipura what will Simran do? Will this change also push her to find a life beyond her immediate circumstances where her fate is sealed?

The last dialogue of the film DDLJ "Ja Simran Jee Le Apni Zindagi!" is probably the most popular one. While it is meme's favourite child it depicts the dilemma of being an Indian woman and how at every point in her life she needs someone else's permission to live it. Even if the women in Kamathipura do not have a bauji to restrict them, society sits on the seat of judgement and otherizes them. 

Will Simran break free to take charge of her life? What is stopping these women to look for a happier and more satisfying life? Why is finding personal freedom for women in India such a big deal? 

The film directed by Pankaj Dubey, produced by Sarika and written by Shradha Singh provides a refreshing take on personal freedom breaking free of social constraints while celebrating the iconic film.

The views expressed are the author's own.

You can watch the film here:

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