Sati

'Sati' tells a simple but disturbing story of a mute village girl who is mostly neglected by her family and asked to do household chores. As tradition would have it, she's seen as a burden by her family because of her inefficiency and who in the village would want to marry a mute girl? She's forced to marry a tree and things only get worse when she's pregnant. Aparna Sen carefully directs the film. The sets are all very simple and the background score is minimal, adding rawness to the village environment. Shabana Azmi is cast in the main lead and the actress does nothing short of giving an excellent heartbreaking performance. Her Uma is one of the most tragic figures in Indian cinema. The look on Uma's face that we see through the drapes, in the final storm scene when everyone lock themselves inside (to protect from the storm) is unforgettable. Almost two decades later Sen would cast her again in the marvelous '15 Park Avenue'. Here too Sen uses a lot of symbolic elements, an obvious one being Uma's muteness which reflects the silent suffering of society's helpless women suffering. Another contrast for gender preference is shown in how pleased the people are that the cow gives birth to a female calf but how disappointed hey are when a woman gives birth to a daughter. The supporting cast range from adequate to wooden. 'Sati' is a wonderful but heartbreakingly harrowing film. One needs to have the mental preparation to sit through it as it deserves to be watched.

When I had seen 36 Chowrangee Lane directed by Aparna Sen, I could feel some influence by Satyajit Ray in her work.

This film once again has clear influence of Ray's style on Sen. Some of the scenes from Pather Panchali are reflected in several scenes of Sati, especially an old widow lady, a village hut with cows, thunderstorms. Of course, here they are beautifully colored, blue background in the thunderstorm nights seem to be Sen's favorite theme, remember Mr and Mrs Aiyer? Coming to the theme of the film, it is a solid critique of social oppression especially against women in 18th and 19th century Bengal. Film starts with a widow being burnt by Hindu upper caste folks led by a Brahmin religious leader who is portrayed as a villain throughout.

Shabana Azmi as a mute lady is married to a tree, wonderful acting by her again.

Overall, a masterpiece!