What is it about Mirch Masala that is so tantalizing and engaging? Is it the congregation of these beautiful women in a Gujarati village, all strong and yet lorded over by the rules of a patriarchal society? 38 years after it was made Ketan Mehta’s Mirch Masala remains an enigmatic mesmeric parable on women’s rights. On the topmost level of perception it’s an excellent thriller about a bunch of very attractive women who try to hide from a dangerous predator.
This year’s festival offers a tribute to Indian cinema with a retrospective selection under its ‘Legacy Rewind’ and ‘Timeless Tales’ sections, honouring the work of some of the most iconic filmmakers and their magnum opus including Subhash Ghai, Mansoor Khan, Vijay Anand and Smita Patil. It will also showcase iconic films from Hollywood.
The ‘Legacy Rewind’ slate will pay homage to Subhash Ghai, marking 45 years of his iconic film ‘Karz’ (1980), a musical thriller that redefined the genre with its unforgettable soundtrack and performances by Rishi Kapoor, Simi Garewal and Tina Munim.
Ketan Mehta’s Mirch Masala (1986) wastes no time in calling out the active, hypocritical and even passive culprits of a deep-rooted patriarchal order. Based on a short story by Chunilal Madia, the film is set in the Rann of Kutch in the 1940s, where drought threatens a parched riverside village. Here, men abuse women with impunity and “Me too” women squirm in the systemic oppression. The local priest sanitises the endemic evils of caste, class and misogyny as maya (illusion) or part of the ephemeral. Amidst ignorance, prejudice and illiteracy, it takes little for a whip-wielding colonial stooge (an almost manic and excellent Naseeruddin Shah) to increase his own ambit of aggression.
