Swami (1977)

स्वामी

Should a spirited, intelligent young woman follow her heart and trust it to lead her to the right place?  Or should she submit to her duty, and trust that doing so will lead her to the right place?  This is the question raised by Basu Chatterjee's Swami ("master"), but the film's answer is ambiguous.

Mini (Shabana Azmi) is a bright village girl with academic ambitions and an appetite for literature and philosophy.   Her intellectual uncle (Utpal Dutt) indulges her brainy bent, encouraging her studies and running interference between Mini and her mother (Sudha Shivpuri), a pious widow whose only concern is to see Mini married, and quickly.  Mini has a nascent love affair with her neighbor Narendra (Vikram), the zamindar's son, a student in Calcutta who on his frequent visits brings her Victorian literature, listens raptly to her discourse, and is bold enough to kiss her opportunistically when they are caught together in a rainstorm.  Circumstances  conspire against Mini and Narendra, though, and soon Mini finds herself married against her wishes to a wheat trader Ganshyam (Girish Karnad) from a neighboring village.  Plunged into despair, Mini struggles to become accustomed to life in her unwanted marriage and her new home, where Ganshyam's stepmother seems to favor Mini's sisters-in-law and where her new husband treats her with a patience that she finds perplexing. 

Swami feels like an artier version of Hum dil de chuke sanam; though it differs in the details, the basic elements are quite similar:   A spunky but fundamentally immature young woman falls in love with one man but is impelled to marry another; she mopes miserably for some period of time while her husband is kinder to her than she is in any state to appreciate; and when her husband, astonishingly, lets her follow her heart, she  comes to realize which man she truly belongs with.  And like Hum dil de chuke sanam, it's an engaging story (so much the more so when one imagines watching it from the perspective of a society in which many marriages are arranged).  The first 45 minutes are the most entertaining, as we get to know Mini and her uncle, and watch her relationship with Narendra blossom.  Mini is full of life, cheeky and smart; she takes as much pleasure in gathering jasmine flowers and weaving them into garlands as she does arguing the finer points of philosophy, and it is a joy to watch her enjoying her life.

After Mini's marriage, Swami bumps off the rails a bit.  It's somewhat interesting to see Ganshyam tolerating her sullen, withdrawn behavior, and once she starts to appreciate his extraordinary kindness the film picks up again.  But there's only so much petulant moping we need to see, and Mini's interactions with the other female members of her household are grating.  As the film's conclusion is inevitable, it could be a bit swifter about getting there.  The highlight of the second half is a surprise guest appearance by Dharmendra and Hema Malini as a pair of cheery wedding dancers, whose jaunty song about a young woman running away with her love not only foreshadows the film's climax, but also comes closest to bringing a smile to Mini's face as anything else in the second hour of the film. 

The most problematic aspect of Swami is the price that Mini pays for the reward of Ganshyam's gentle protection.  It's not the loss of Narendra that is troubling - young love comes and goes - but rather the sacrifice of what really set Mini apart from her sisters-in-law and presumably from other village girls as well: her love of books and studying.  At the beginning of the film, Mini announces proudly that she is in the middle of her B.A. studies; these are dropped without a word.  Without Narendra running errands to Calcutta, Mini's supply of new books is cut off; even if Ganshyam is kind enough to supply them for her, though, with whom is she going to debate them?  It is no wonder that Mini is still crying and depressed, even after the story's resolution. 

It is this confusion of message that leaves me most perplexed about the film's intentions.  Mini has certainly come to appreciate Ganshyam's warmth, but the overwhelming sense is that she has chosen him out of duty and propriety rather than out of love - and worse, has forfeited any venture outside the traditional woman's sphere.  The film seems to say that doing the dutiful thing will get a girl a kind husband who buys her saris and electric fans, and that should be a sufficient reward. 

(A more Shabana-oriented look at Swami will be posted in the next few days at Sounds Like Power.) 

Comments

[Amodini]

I remember seeing "Swami" as a kid, on DoorDarshan, and even now I remember it as an extremely well-made and engrossing film. Yes, the end doesn't solve any "intellectual" problems - seemed to suggest that a woman's mind came second to "homeliness". However, I take comfort in the fact, that Ghanshyam's character in the film, although not an outright feminist, is of a fair and just man, and will (supposedly) support Mini in any intellectual endeavor that she might undertake.

[carla]

Amodini, do you think it's possible that Mini's sadness in the film's bookend scenes is meant to be entirely subsversive? That is, she has done the dutiful thing, but she's miserable? A film that wanted to make the pro-traditional, pro-homeliness point might show her being happy and relieved that her ordeal is over; instead, *Swami* shows her misery precisely because she knows what has been taken from her. I feel I want to watch those scenes again and see if this interpretation is not just wishful thinking on my part.

[Maajhi]

Carla, such a die-hard movie buff that you are, where do you review non-Indian movies? I can't find them, and I'm quite curious to know your thoughts on European movies like Volver and Lives of Others.

[carla]

Maajhi, believe it or not, I was only a casual viewer of movies before Hindi films found me. I have commented occasionally (very occasionally) on movies on my first blog, Geek of All Trades (link in the left sidebar, somewhere) but I never got systematic about it until I'd become obsessive about Hindi movies. And I'm still not so when it comes to movies other than Hindi movies. Weird, huh?

I've seen *The Lives of Others* and felt like I needed a shower afterwards, it was a very good movie but very manipulative and not in a pleasant way. The more I thought about it and talked it over with my husband, who thought it was simply fantastic, the more angry and disgusted I became. But the details have since escaped me - or been blotted out of my mind. I never saw *Volver*.

[Maajhi]

Volver is recommended. I wish they make a Hindi movie based on the story - with proper credits to Almodovar of course.

About obsession with movies: Really, what distinguishes Hindi movies from other ones that you can obsess over them and not others? Should be interesting to mull over. Is it that they are star-driven? Is it that ever director has a particular style? Is it the epic nature of (most) stories? Is it the songs? Is it that you can identify with the conditions of the characters?

To be honest, that's the case for me as well, but I always put it down to the fact that I was Indian, and so obviously experienced Indian movies in a very personal way, like I was experiencing them with the characters rather than just a story I was watching. I like it when movies take the audience along with them, quietly drawing them in to experience the story with them, rather than just a 'this happened, then this happened' kind of style. This is also why I used to enjoy my grandma's stories - because I felt like I was in them, part of that world.

[Lee]

I just watched Swami a couple of weeks ago and had the same reaction as you did Carla. I agree that the sadness expressed by Mini at the beginning and end was a subtle but cynical comment on marriage. Mini herself foreshadows her own predicament when she argues with Naren about marriage and whether one can truly be independent. She says that marriage is a bond which restricts independence and that this bond is good for society. So what may be good for society can sometimes require great sacrifice on the part of the individual. As you say, she has done her duty, but is miserable for it.

It's interesting that Mini's Mother never saw Naren as a suitor, whereas Mini's in-laws comment he is a very attractive catch. Guess the plot wouldn't have adanced otherwise!

Also, thanks for describing the Dharmendra/Hema Malini song. Unfortunately, so many hindi films with english subtitles do not subtitle the songs and so I am only left guessing their meaning! The subtitles also stopped in the final scenes of the film, so I wasn't sure what Mini is saying when she returns to her husband's house. I presume something similar to what she says at the beginning?

[carla]

Lee, I don't think she says anything at the end different from what was said at the beginning.

I'm very intrigued by the subtlety and cynicism that's coming to the surface the more I think about this film, and now I want to watch it again.

With respect to Naren, I think Ganshyam's family is of a higher social stratum than Mini's. Naren is Mini's zamindar - the landowner in her own village - that's a match that Mini's mother would never have realistically considered (we are not told what Naren's father thought of it but it's a safe guess he would not have approved). Ganshyam, being a businessman and a widower, might fall on the social scale somewhere between Mini and Naren - his sister could be "good enough" for Naren even Mini were not.

[carla]

Maajhi, I wrote a long response to your question of why Hindi films, and then I hit some wrong key combination and it vanished. I'll reconstruct it some other time, most likely as a post on my catch-all blog Geek of All Trades. It's a subject I've given a lot of thought to and I want to do it justice.

[Maajhi]

Cool, should make for interesting reading.

I saw Das Leben der Anderen tonight and it was subtle yet moving. Well deserves all the accolades, I say.

[yves]

Hello Carla and Maajhi,

Most interesting, this question of "why Indian films", as opposed to other ones. I believe I had tried to ask (and answer) that same question in that entry: http://www.letstalkaboutbollywood.com/article-6570236.html
What do you think?
cheers,
yves

[Maajhi]

Yves, you capture it very well. I wrote a comment on your page saying much the same, and expounding on my own ideas of why these movies differ; hope you got it cuz I couldn't see it on the site :). Tu écris en français aussi ou quoi?

[infas]

i want to buy this film.if any one know how to buy pls help me.contact infas@live.com

[carla]

Hello infas, I don't know where you are located but if you have a look at this post and its comments you might get some leads:
http://www.filmigeek.net/2007/08/filmi-geeks-sho.html
I got *Swami* from Nehaflix; it should still be available there.

[Shama]

If my memory serves me correctly, Saratchandra's novel (on which the film is based) ends with Mini going to her lover. There was some discussion when the movie was released as to the more conservative ending of the film as opposed to the novel which presumably debuted in a more conservative time.

[Krishnakali]

Hello Carla , I liked your beautiful review of the film and it is your earnest study of the characters that makes me want to continue a discussion on the question you raised in the end. This film is based on the novel by the same name by the eminent Bengali author Saratchandra Chattopadhay and unlike the recent adaptations ( like Sanjay Bhansali's Devdas) , this one quite faithfully recreates the characters as well the socio-cultural setup in early 1900 Bengal and thus the inevitability of the ending is predestined in the time of the setting of the novel. Even in the novel Mini runs away with her lover (with the help of the maid) but realises her folly the moment she reaches her lover's rented house in the city and waits for her husband to come for her ( it is also shown in a way -as if her wait is a way she tests herself whether she has placed her faith in the right person now & consequently whether she actually has matured enough to realise whom she feels attached to from her heart and who belongs to her). When her husband comes to take her he simply says 'I knew it in my heart that you are still mine' . From this point onwards Mini and Ghanashyam truly become married to each other and move on towards building a future together. The fact that Mini goes back to her husband's uncultured family and maybe never gets to complete her education does not bother her anymore , because at that point she has found a new dream -that of taking on the responsibility of a home and family of her own with someone whom she can truly call her friend. Having said that , it is also true that she belonged to a generation where women could never have an independent existence of their own and education for the sake of education was available to only the richest of rich classes. Even if her Uncle had been alive probably she would have been able to complete her degree but to be able to really do something with her education or even continue beyond that at that time required a much stronger will power as well as financial opulence than Mini had. At least she found someone who would encourage her love of books and support her in her passion for reading. That was wayyyyyy more than most girls of that time were allowed to do. So in a way she actually chose the best option available.

[Dev]

Swami has been one of my most favourite movies. It touched my heart even when I was in my twenties and when I was overtaken by strong, aggressive characters like Howard Roark (Fountainhead) and Amitabh Bachhan's angry young man roles in Bollywood.

I am reading above comments in 2011 (4 years after they have been originally posted).

Most of the discussion has been centred around life's injustices to Mini and how she sacrifices her individuality, intellectual curiosity and desires for a husband centric and boring life at the end of the movie. I am in full agreement. Especially when she has better options, compared to what Ghanashyam can ever give her.

However, i believe the theme of the movie is more philosophical than the smaller aspects of life discussed in various threads.

Philosophically....."that what is given should not be judged for its worth based on its absolute value . even if whatever is given is not worth much, or does not necessarily lead to happiness of the recipient, but whatever little the poor giver gave was everything he could offer, the most he could sacrifice (the scene when Ghanashyam, tired at the end of the day, lets Mini sleep on the bed and himself sleeps on the floor; the scene made me very emotional) and he did similar gestures every time he had an opportunity to make Mini's life better.....his awareness of his own inadequacies and shortcomings to make his wife happy...that is a golden heart...... and it would be a priviledge to have such a life partner....because golden hearts are rare.

There are parallels in Hindu Mythology. when Sudama offers puffed rice in his visit to Lord Krisha, when Shabri offers berries to Lord Rama (which she has partly tasted). both these offerings are not worthy of anything in absolutes. But they are everything that the poor Sudama and Shabri can offer and hence they both are the closest to God's heart.

Try to understand the thought of a higher order here. Young and rich Narendra can offer her several BMWs, get her books, have a rigorous intellectual discourse and even satisfy her physiological needs as a woman, much better than Ghanashyam ever can, but to me a Golden heart is priceless.

net/net, I do feel miserably for Mini at the end of the movie (based on the outcome)and if she were my wife, i would willingly offer her hand to someone who would make her very very happy. But I would hold a rare Ghanashyam's character close to my heart until I would die.

[carla]

Krishnakali and Dev, how wonderful to receive two such thoughtful and interesting comments on the same day. I can't thank you enough for bringing me back to this movie with your thoughts, and I hope you will stick around and make such comments on some of my other reviews. Thank you!

Krishnakali: I take your points. I am inconsistent sometimes about how willing I am to take movies about women in their context. Sometimes I am willing to relinquish my modern & western perspective a little more than others. It is all well and good to say that Mini doesn't mind sacrificing her intellectual life for the dream of "taking on the responsibility of a home and family" - but men rarely have to make this sacrifice, and yet it is presented over and over again, in the stories of many cultures and many times and places, as a sacrifice that a woman should be grateful to have the opportunity to make. And this brings me to ...

Dev: I really do appreciate your insights about Ghanshyam, and I think you are right that my original review and subsequent comments gave him short shrift. He is an exceptionally kind person, and the next time I watch the movie I will keep that more in mind, and think more about the facets of the story that are his.

However, comparison of Ghanshyam to Narendra is a red herring - as I said in my review, it's not the loss of Narendra that matters, it's the loss of Mini herself, her own suppleness of mind and her own vivacious essence. Moreover, even if Mini is lucky that her sacrifice nets her as golden a heart as Ghanshyam's, for every Mini, how many women are there who make that same sacrifice and don't win such a prize?

[Krishnakali]

Hi Carla , Thanks for your reply and I must say this is getting very interesting . I loved the book , saw the film couple of years ago ( so don't remember every scene absolutely clearly ) , but all I remember is that I did not feel that Mini made a sacrfice. let me try to see whether I can explain why I think so -
Mini does NOT make a sacrifice. Why?

1) Your degree does not prove how ‘educated’ you are. Just as we say “Beauty is as Beauty does” the same goes for education too. I think all of us remember our College days with the same fondness when there was nothing between us and our books, when we used to have heated debates and felt jubiliant after tearing our teachers apart with ‘intellectually provoking ‘ questions. But as is often stated , an University Examination result does not reflect how knowlegable or educated you have become. At some point one has to leave the cocoon of being a student and face the biggest examination of life –ie ‘Life’ itself – which keeps throwing challenges every moment and you have deal with them with your acquired knowledge as well your own intellect and sense of right and wrong . What Naren was offering –a luxurious life and a lifetime of didactic debates though look tempting is eventually not going to help Mini truly live her potential as a woman of substance or make a difference to the people or world around her ….. because there is not going to BE anybody around her except Naren. Whereas in Ghanshyam’s house she is going to be the ‘Lady of the House’ where she gets to meet people from all walks of life ( ie comes across a steady flow of opinions of other people –each of which she will have to judge and consider), gets to speak her mind and make decisions everyday which will affect an entire household. It is like a choice between working for a Boss who thinks you make an excellent ‘deputy’ versus running your own company. Which one do you think sounds more challenging and intellectually stimulating? Life with Naren would be idyllic , but life with Ghanshyam is teeming with possibilites.

2) She returns to Ghanshyam not out of duty but actually makes a ‘choice’ of the ‘better man’ to get HER as a life partner. As her senses clear and she thinks with an unbiased mind she realizes who brings out the best in her. Naren stimulates her thoughts and reasoning power, whereas Ghanshyam with his silence, support and smile teaches Mini to raise her voice against injustice for the first time. Ghanshyam wins her love and loyalty by being the only person after her Uncle who truly ‘lets her be herself’. Her predicament reminds me of Marianne from Sense & Sensibility.

3)The problem is at that point of time the ‘professional independent woman’ concept did not exist . But don’t make the mistake of thinking that ‘marriage’ (wanted or unwanted) could ever kill the independent women (that is with independence of mind) in any era. It was women like Mini ( of early 1900s who were educated but were denied that choice of doing anything professionally) , who carried on the silent revolution to change this system , fought with their husbands and in-laws for their daughters and daughter –in-laws rights and passed on the message of having a goal in life and thinking beyond the four walls for the generations to come. It is their silent and untold fight against the system –by staying in and running the system, that today in the generation of Mini’s granddaughters that the professional working women are taking the subcontinent by storm and the number of Indian men preferring ‘professional working women’ as marriage partners continue to rise steadily.

[Krishnakali]

What is shown in the film is only half the story , but this is what I was trying to mean by ‘taking on the responsibilty’. Mini did not lose the battle , in fact she is having the last laugh.

[carla]

Krishnakali - thanks very much for the additional thoughts.

You have made some assumptions about how Mini's life would be with Narendra, and how it would be with Ghanshyam - I think I might make different assumptions about those things, and thereby reach different conclusions. I don't see much evidence in the movie that life in Ghanshyam's house is going to be as cosmopolitan as you suggest - nor do I see evidence that supports your premise that life with Narendra would be isolated.

If those claims arise from details in the book, well, then we are discussing different stories, and therefore obviously reach different conclusions. My critique is of the movie, which has to stand alone as its own story and its own text.

At any rate, I thank you for your perspective, which is very interesting - and next time I watch the movie I will keep your ideas in mind, and see if I am wrong in thinking they aren't present in the movie's own text.

[Bosco]

I would like to take this opportunity to pay a tribute to the scintillating and soul-stirring music score by 'Rajesh Roshan' for this movie. Beautiful melody, lyrics and immense justice done to the songs by Lata Mangeshkar in " Pal bhar mein yeh kya ho gaya", by Kishore Kumar in "Yaadon mein woh sapno mein hain" and by Yesudas in "Kaa karoon sajni aaye na baalam" created magic on screen. All brilliant singers chosen aptly by a brilliant music director. Simple yet effective lyrics by 'Amit Khanna' added to the sweetness of the songs.

Picturisation of every song was done beautifully.

[Amodini]

Rereading your review of this film (and replying to your question), I was struck by this :

she has chosen him out of duty and propriety rather than out of love . . . The film seems to say that doing the dutiful thing will get a girl a kind husband who buys her saris and electric fans, and that should be a sufficient reward.

Can't agree with the above, since Mini isn't really sacrificing here - she is, at the end of the film, truly Ghanshyam's mate, and she realises that her feelings for Ghanshyam outweigh what she has felt for Narendra. This might be a philosophical was of thinking, but then, material/intellectual pursuits matter not as much.

[carla]

Amodini, thank you for your comment. I don't know if you read the other recent comments on this review but the discussion covered the same points you raise. And I just have to say to you what I said to the others: you watched a very different film than I did.

You make these assertions: "Mini isn't sacrificing" or "Ghanshyam is truly her soulmate" - and I don't see any evidence for these claims in the film at all. What is "truly her soulmate" about a guy who shares no interest in the things that made her sparkle and gave her so much life in the first half of the film? How can you even say that giving up those things is no sacrifice? He's a nice fellow, for sure - I suppose that is the best she can hope for in her wretched situation but I cannot see my way to thinking she should be grateful to give up her independent mind and interests because her assigned husband is a nice fellow. And more importantly, I don't think the movie shows that she is happy to do so - it shows her sacrificing. That is why she is crying so miserably at the end.

Perhaps the film is sufficiently silent on these matters that both sides of this debate are free to project their own interpretations. But I do find that my interpretation is supported by what is actually shown in the film, about Mini's personality and interests, about the way she is treated in the household, and about how miserable she looks at the end.