Pagglait Trailer Busts The Flawed 'Good Girls Gone Mad' Trope

Pagglait trailer review: Pagglait is about a woman who cannot bring herself to cry after her husband's death. And so naturally, she is dubbed 'mad.' The film stars Sanya Malhotra in the lead, alongside Shrutii Sharma, Sheeba Chaddha, Rajesh Tailang, Ashutosh Rana and Raghubir Yadav. Directed by Umesh Bist and produced by Guneet Monga under her Sikhya Entertainment banner, the film releases on March 26, on Netflix.

"Jab ladki log ko akal aati hai na, toh sab unhe pagglait hi kehte hain." These are the words of a woman who just lost her husband and whose family is trying to control her. A woman who is soldiering on with her own terms despite everything. A wise woman. Or so Sandhya (Malhotra) calls herself. But the world around her doesn't see her as such. How can they? There are a million ways a widow is supposed to be, as per social convention. And Sandhya chooses to be nothing like it.

Snadhya seems to be everything an Indian widow is not supposed to be - outspoken, candid, smiling and liberated: Pagglait trailer review.

This slice-of-life film goes from naively sweet to wickedly sour when the family finds out that only Sandhya is eligible for their son's Rs 50 lakh worth of insurance money after his death. Thus begin subtle efforts to push Sandhya - who wasn't already grieving the loss on the outside - in a direction that would ensure that the money stays in the family.

Swinging between tears and assertiveness, she stands her ground, ungiving to the family's sly ways. And resisting the title of pagglait (mad) which has so conveniently been bestowed on her for being everything an Indian widow is not supposed to be - outspoken, candid, smiling and liberated.

Doesn't this hit close to home for all women, not just widows? Haven't we all been labelled wild, bad, mad, loose, talkative, simply for not adhering to the chaste ways of living chalked out for women? When we take over the reins of our own lives from the patriarchal soceity that has been driving our carriage for us for so long, aren't we called pagglait? 

Pagglait Trailer Review: Let's All Go A Little Mad

What is madness really? Anything that goes against the tide is deemed "mad". A single mother thrice-divorced is mad. A young woman choosing to rent out her own apartment in the same city her parents live in is mad. An older woman donning dresses and makeup to get herself clicked for fun is mad.

But what are all these examples of if not free-thinking, assertive individuals? If that is all it takes to be called mad, then don't we all qualify? Shouldn't we all embrace madness, if it brings joy and satisfaction in our lives ?

When women refuse to listen to society or stand down, They don't just challenge social norms and oppression, they also reclaim what was already theirs - agency. And if doing that qualifies you, me, and all the women around us for that coveted pagglait title, then heck yes. We're all mad here.

Watch the Pagglait trailer ">here: 

Views expressed are the author's own.