Trigger warning: graphic description of rape, mention of suicide
I saw down to binge-watch ‘Aranyak’ to see Raveena Tandon be a badass in her own show. She is a national award-winning actress who was let down by ageism and sexism during her time in Bollywood.
I knew that sexual violence will be a crucial plot in this series. Last year, when ‘Paatal Lok’ was released, a Twitter user had expressed her concerns about how rape or sexual harassment is used in the majority of popular films or TV shows. There was a long discussion regarding the same and if it should be disregarded altogether.
Women deserve to have their stories told. Their voices should be heard without being neutralised by the male gaze. Female-centric stories often cover topics like sexual violence. I personally hope that these stereotypical depictions of rape survivors or victims will be avoided.
‘Aranyak’ ended up feeding some of these harmful narratives, which is sad in the post-#MeToo and #TimesUp world.
The series is about police officers Kasthuri (Raveena Tandon) and Angad (Parambrata Chattopadhyay) investigating the rape and murder of a young french girl in the fictional town of Sironah. She was found hanging in the middle of a jungle, eerily similar to a series of killings that took place a couple of decades ago. Townsfolks believe it to be the act of ‘Leopard Man.’
Angad comes from the city and is more familiar with technological advancements, follows the legal processes, and has a more grounded approach to the investigation.
Kasthuri is more rebellious and has the spirit of a rural Indian in her. Following these stereotypes, Kasthuri can’t speak or understand proper English. She often resorts to illegal ways by beating and torturing the suspects.
In a way, this contrast between the two leads made the series more enjoyable. Raveena is fantastic in her role. Her chemistry with Parambrata Chattopadhyay made this series an engaging thriller. One will end up watching the whole show in one sitting, though I have mixed feelings about how the series ended, especially in terms of their respective character arcs.
What bothered me in the series is the depiction and handling of rape.
On one hand, Angad and Kasthuri confront a boy serving time for rape by telling him that lack of consent means rape, thereby justifying his sentence. And I had hoped that the series will handle the subject accordingly with ample sensitivity.
But no.
The filmmakers took a hideous decision by showing the rape of the French girl graphically.
The girl, who is in a drugged state, is shown being held down by her perpetrator. The one scene where her hand is pinned down by her rapist’s knee was more than enough to highlight the horror the girl went through.
Instead, the makers went up a notch by showing the perpetrator humping on top of her and finally orgasming from the assault. Then, he simply walks away with a nervous look on his face. In the words of one of the characters who play an antagonist, he looked ‘scared.’
Then, the series tries to humanise the rapist by making him appear as someone who ‘lost everything’ and that rape is a ‘mistake’ made by boys (also often known as the ‘boys will be boys’ narrative). His actions were left as something that was only dealt with by powerful people for their political gains and ambitions.
This comes in the same context where a rape victim is dehumanised and her body disregarded from the narrative without giving her or her family proper closure.
The intention of the series is to deal with corruption. And also to showcase the sick attempts of people in powerful positions to get away with horrendous crimes by framing innocent people.
But this girl’s role, in a larger context, is reduced to a plot device in the conspiracy.
Towards the end, when another character’s fate is revealed (avoiding spoilers), viewers are expected to simply forget about the girl who faced this atrocity. Just like how another woman’s rape became a motivation of sorts for a man to take revenge against the Leopard Man, a classic case of fridging.
Nine women were raped and killed by the same person and it is surprising how the townfolks managed to simply let that go without giving their families the required closure. Are those rapes meant to be shown as the naivety of the town’s police service?
Now, I have come across cacophony debates around whether rape scenes should be shown explicitly or not.
One side argues that these scenes should NOT be shown explicitly. Sansa’s rape by Ramsay Bolton faced a severe degree of scrutiny owing to her age and circumstances. Explicit rape of a male character in ’13 Reasons Why season 2′ faced criticisms. Some critics and makers argue that such visual grammar is necessary to drive the plot and to show the severity of the crime. For instance, the makers of ’13 Reasons Why’ have said that the intention is to make the audience uncomfortable.
While others say that words and other metaphors are more than enough to highlight the horrors. ‘Mad Max Fury Road’ is about a group of women trying to get away from rape by their husbands. This article perfectly sums up why it is completely unnecessary to show rape scenes.
Visuals of rape tend to be too disturbing and almost torturous for the viewers. But there are some viewers who reportedly derive pleasure from such content.
Indian cinema has a love-hate relationship with women.
Rape, as a subject, has been shown from all angles. Some stories feed stigma against survivors by fridging them or driving them to suicide. Some stories show women avenging the atrocity done to them or someone close to them. Either way, it is a sensitive topic and filmmakers know it.
Sexual violence is a larger systemic issue where women are simply preyed upon. Women’s lives, autonomy, and social freedom are dictated by the existence of such crimes in different social sections. Rape can ALSO happen when a husband disregards his wife’s verbal consent and also when a stranger attacks lonely women.
Rapists can be reformed. They should be. But it cannot happen unless the severity of the crime is addressed. If sexual violence is a major plot point then it has to be dealt with sensitively instead of brushing it off as a ‘mistake.’