Beth aur Babli

Aspi has just written a post about what movie character he would like to play, and now Amrita has written a post about why none of the female role types are worthwhile and she'd rather play the hero, thank you very much. It's pointed and thoughtful and sharp and bang on.

So let's hear it. What movie character would you like to play? I had to think about that question very hard for about ten minutes, and then it came to me in a flash of brilliance: Vimmi/Babli from Bunty aur Babli.

She's smart. She's funny. She schemes, she laughs, she loves. She enjoys life. She knows when to let her emotions show and isn't afraid to be herself. Despite running away, acting out all sorts of brassy and bold roles, and being a criminal, Vimmi/Babli escapes the typical melodramatic horrors, punishments, and subjugations Amrita outlines. And in the very end, she doesn't have to sacrifice her individual talents and interests for husband, child, parents, or home. In my ideal script, there never would have been a baby, and Babli and Bunty could have just continued their work, either with or without the police. But given the massive amounts of crap female characters in Hindi films often have to burden, a baby that is eventually integrated into the character's life and personality as they have been developed throughout the film is no small feat.