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Lata Mangeshkar, the iconic singer and our inspiring woman this week, believes age is no reason to stop dreaming of further achievement.
Lata Mangeshkar, Inspiring woman
Lata Mangeshkar, the woman in long plaits and a plain sari, who has received the Bharata Ratna (2001), Padma Bhushan (1969), Padma Vibhushan (1999), three national awards, four Filmfare Best Female Playback awards and several others for her melodious singing, the ‘Nightingale of India’ continues to win fans as she celebrates her 83rd birthday.
Starting her career at the age of thirteen and still continuing for over seven decades, having sung more than 28,000 songs (the most recorded ever after Muhammad Rafi), Lata Mangeshkar is a woman of determination, will power and commitment.
Actor Jaya Bachchan’s comment, “No heroine feels she has arrived until Lataji sings for her,” says it all. Though she feels her voice is no longer suitable for today’s cinema and music, she sings for her music company, L.M Music, and also records songs for her own label, which has had sixteen records so far. Besides her rich repertoire of film music, she has also song many devotional songs; within films too, her oeuvre includes songs of romance, pathos, flirtation, separation and every other possible situation.
In 1984, the state govt of Madhya Pradesh instituted the Lata Mangeshkar award in her honour. Even now, she feels there are new destinations to be reached and that an artist’s goals and achievements can never have a full stop.
Why we find her inspiring:
– For the hardworking and devoted attitude towards her work.
– For believing and demonstrating that while age may slow a person down, it need not stop her altogether.
– For living life on her own terms, in an era when women rarely could be single or even independent.
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People say that women are the greatest enemies of women. I vehemently disagree. It is the patriarchal mindset that makes women believe in the wrong ideology.
The entire world celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024. It should be a joyful day, but unfortunately, not all women are entitled to this privilege, as violence against women is at its peak. The experience of oppression pushes many women to choose freedom. As far as patriotism is concerned, feminism is not a cup of tea in this society.
What happens when a woman decides to stand up for herself? Does this world easily accept the decisions of women in this society? What inspires them to be free of the clutches of the oppression that women have faced for ages? Most of the time, women do not get the chance to decide for themselves. Their lives are always at the mercy of someone, which can be their parents, siblings, husband, or children.
In some cases, women do not feel the need to make any decisions. They are taught to obey the patriarchal system, which makes them believe that they are right. In my family, I was never taught to make decisions on my own. It was always my parents who bought dresses and all that I needed.
14 years after her last feature film Dhobi Ghat, storyteller extraordinaire comes up with her new film, Laapataa Ladies, a must watch.
*Some spoilers alert*
Every religion around the world dictates terms to women. The onus is always on women to be ‘modest’ and cover their faces and bodies so men can’t be “tempted”, rather than on men to keep their eyes where they belong and behave like civilized beings. So much so that even rape has been excused on the grounds of women eating chowmein or ‘men will be men’. I think the best Hindi movie retort to this unwanted advice on ‘akeli ladki khuli tijori ki tarah hoti hai’ (an alone woman is like an open jewellery box) came from Geet in Jab We Met – Kya aap gyan dene ke paise lete hain kyonki chillar nahin hain mere paas.
The premise of Laapataa Ladies is beautifully simple – two brides clad in the ghunghat that covers their identity get mixed up on a train. Within this Russian Doll, you get a comedy of errors, a story of getting lost, a commentary on patriarchy’s attitude towards women, a mystery, and a tale of finding oneself, all in one. Done with a mostly light touch that has you laughing and nodding along.
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