As the title suggests, it is all about the ladies or the lost ladies of Nirmal Pradesh. As the talks go around, for sure, the film serves as a sweet, savory dish to relish after a long-awaited gun and violence, patriarchy induced or sometimes woke affirmative Bollywood movie. After a very long time, Bollywood was able to crack the code of real feminism without bashing men or making women’s characters hyper-strong, or showcasing torture porn in order to prove the plights of society. This film is filled with one-liners and stomach-aching laughter throughout the film. The subtle art of weaving feminism in the tapestry of each scene of the film is the film’s hero.
Let us talk first about the obvious ones: The movie revolves around the ‘Ghunghat or the veil’ culture in the country, but this film speaks much more than that. The ‘Ghunghat or the veil’ is literal and a metaphor in the film. It starts with the covering ‘Ghunghat’ and ends with the character Phool not covering her head with it. The film stands as the campaign for women’s voices not just being visible but also acknowledging a strong sense of sisterhood grooming throughout the film’s characters.
Female Friendship:
“Deep, abiding friendships are the place, where many women know lasting love.”- bell hooks
As young girls, we are hardly taught about female friendships at school or home. All we learned through people around or the films was “a woman is another woman’s foe.” Misogyny has skewed our ideas of female friendship. Perhaps that is why many girls like to have boys as friends during school. Moreover, we always preferred boys over girls as friends because they are ‘less drama.’ Little did we know it was all ‘fraaaud’ as the character Manju Maai or station Daadi claimed. The patriarchy has made a fraud deal with us, keeping us in darkness with the tag of ‘good girl, girl from respectable family’ scam. Furthermore, we are still unable to break through this’ fraud.’
The beauty and the necessity to embrace female friendship are reflected in various film scenes. Because of the strong bonding developed among women characters, the film holds accountable to the staunchly affirmed idea of feminism. As the acclaimed feminist Gloria Steinem says, “women understand.” Across the world, women live much of the same kind of lives systemically. The mother of Deepak, talking with her mother-in-law, acknowledges how women perform the roles of sister, sister-in-law, and mother-in-law but forget to become friends.
Moreover, looking at Pushpa’s or Jaya’s bond with Deepak’s sister-in-law, she wishes Phool the same as becoming friends. She teasingly proposes putting effort into becoming friends with her mother-in-law and replies, “Tirraayy kar sakte hai.” This talks volumes about the importance and need of it. As social theorist and educator bell Hooks penned, “We want these bonds to be honored cherished commitments, to bind us as deeply as marriage vows.”
S stands for sisterhood, solidarity, and support:
Sisterhood in this film occupies a higher throne. The strong sisterhood among the ladies is entwined with solidarity, and they support each other to recognize their selves. This sisterhood is very powerful; it helps us in challenging patriarchal misogynist attitudes and also changes lives and enforces movements. Sisterhood not only provides comfort and safe spaces for us to be authentically ourselves without being judged or morally policed but also guides and supports us in being our better selves.
In the film, there are dialogues shared between Pushpa or Jaya and Deepak’s sister-in-law. These scenes talk about how Jaya helps her not just recognize how talented as an artist she is but also makes her give herself the due credit for it. We, as women, are never taught or learned how to receive appreciation and acclamations. We become super uncomfortable when somebody appreciates our work, the food we cook, the song we sing, the way we look, or the impact we have on their lives. We humbly deny their claims and accept that it is the other person’s humility to appreciate us over the top. Whenever someone appreciates how we look, we gasp and look for the right words to reply. Rather than a ‘thank you,’ we look for words such as “Oh, it must be the makeup; you are too kind,’ ‘Oh, I know it is the dress’s color,’ and ‘The filter of the photograph worked well.” We always need to gather the right words. In the film, Deepak’s mother becomes uncomfortable receiving praise when Jaya appreciates the lotus stem curry. She says, “Khaane ka bhi koi taarif karta hai?” and narrates how fond she is of this curry, which reminds her of her childhood and her mother cooking it for her. She adds that she no longer cooks it because her husband and son do not like it. On Jaya asking why she does not cook it for herself, she replies, “Ab toh yaad bhi nahi hume kya pasand hai aur kya nahi,” and she laughingly ends it with, “ab batao, ghar pe aurate k pasand ka sabji Banega.” In the climax, we find her cooking the same curry when Jaya was boarding her bus.
There are many such instances where women uplift women. They praise each other and guide and support each other extensively. The screen time shared between Manju Maai and Phool Kumari is a ‘feminism class 101’. She very amicably explains to Phool about the deranged patriarchal society. With each line uttered from her mouth throughout the film, she challenges a societal norm. She inspires Phool to be beyond the narrow role given to her as a mother or wife and instead earn something on her own. When Manju Maai offers her the pay for her hard work in her shop, Phool hesitates to take it, but later, Manju Maai reminds her that this is her ‘hard-earned money.’ Later in the film, Phool says that when her husband finds her and she goes to her in-law’s village, she will start something of her own, even if it is minimal. Manju Maai mocks her for being unable to call her husband’s name and adds, “Pehle naam to lena sikh le.” This reflects the idea that a woman needs to be empowered, but much before that, she needs to be emancipated. Towards the film’s end, we find Phool Kumari screaming the name Deepak Kumar on the crowded train platform.
A better education and a better job need not always be synonymous with the concept of equality and freedom for a woman. Freedom resides in making decisions, having thoughts and opinions on things, and, most importantly, being able to dream and fulfil those dreams. We find the character Pushpa or Jaya very spooky and suspicious throughout the film, and later, we find her as a woman with bigger aspirations and dreams. We see her not just as a mere survivor but a strong-willed woman who is willing to move heaven and earth to run away from her non-consensual toxic wedding and to pursue her higher education. “train me jab zindagi mujhe in sab se nikalne ka itna bada mauka de rahi tha, hum bewakhoof thodi hai ki ese hi ise jaane dete” Jaya says in the police station when she is asked for all the lies she had told so far. She is an unapologetic woman who not only dares to dream but also has a mind of her own.
The solidarity in the sisterhood provides a safe, comfortable, non-judgmental space. It makes us believe we can be our raw versions without being ashamed. It is a haven of feelings, laughter, fun, pain, grief, sorrows, happiness, ideologies, opinions, and thoughts. Sisterhood becomes a source of healing. Sisterhood provides a platform for the voices and works as a community healing mechanism. Whether it is strong-headed Manju Maai sharing her pain and grief of being the victim of domestic violence or Deepak’s mother unable to remember her likes and dislikes. It provides space to take her husband’s name for Deepak’s sister-in-law without shame.
The solidarity is so much undervalued in this society because it is antithetical to the patriarchal system. They assert that women can love and be loved, be self-sufficient and reliant, and be complete and happy without a male companion or even anybody. In the film, Manju Maai affirms the idea of women living alone, being solely responsible and accountable to their life only, and how we are never in need of men in reality. “aurat khana b bana sakti hai, paise b kama sakti hai, aurat baccha paida b kar sakti ahi aur paal b sakti hai, wese dekha jaye toh aurat ko mard ki koi khaas jarurat nahi hai.”
In the community of sisterhood, every victory or loss is shared by the same homogenous feelings. No victory or loss is personal. Manju Maai, who had never eaten a sweet before as she had nothing to celebrate, eats the Kalakand sweet for Phool, returning to her desired destination, showcasing the shared feeling of joy. Pushpa or Jaya, with the help of Deepak’s sister-in-law, draws Phool’s sketch in order to help them show how the community seeks each other’s help in a crisis.
This solidarity often serves as a form of justice as well. The world has seen many movements carried by the support and solidarity of women. Let it be the women of the world raising their voices against the atrocities of the women of Iraq and Manipur or the #metoo movement around the world or the clusters of voices around the world against the ongoing intersectional discrimination on black, red, brown, Dalit, Adivasi, Bahujan, religious minority, queer, disabled, neurodivergent, working-class marginalized women. Women standing up and cheering for each other is an unsaid rule in female friendships. Furthermore, the sis-code is a much more severe code than any bro-code that ever existed.
Towards the end, we find the so called ‘bechari’ Phool Kumari who was not able to recall the name of her ‘sasural’ (the in-law’s village) and was found lost in a train station, finally boards the train all alone and reaches the desired destination. The ladies of “laapataa ladies” are lost in the film but find their ‘real selves’ through one another. As Jaya is boarding the bus to go to Dehradun for her further studies, Phool hugs her and bids her goodbye by saying, “Aap nahi hoti toh hum kabhi na mil paate,” to which Jaya replies, “Tum nahi hoti toh shayad hum kabhi khud ko dhund nahi paate.” Finally, the “Ghunghat” seems to be unveiled from this society’s “fraaaud.”