The Exploitation of women During Partition as Reflected in the Film Pinjar

The partition of India destroyed the social harmony of the Indian subcontinent. Many writers portrayed the sufferings of the victims caught in the web of violence at that time. The aim of both literature and films is the same, to reflect life as it is.Amrita Pritam,an author of great repute wrote the famous novel Pinjar based on the theme of partition and cultural dislocation.The novel was later adapted into a film having the same name by Chandra Prakash Dwivedi.The film created a furore because of the realistic portrayal of the turbulent times of partition.It highlighted the agony of women victims of partition, especially the physical and mental humiliation they underwent.Women were subjected to physical assault, rape,forced change of religion,forced marriage to their abductors, life of drudgery as evident in the life of Pooro.UrmilaMatondkar played the role of Pooro convincingly.SandaliSinha essayed the role of Lajo.The teary- eyed Pooro,the guilt- driven Rashida managed to bring tears to the eyes of the viewers of this historic film.The film Pinjar by Dwivedi amassed many accolades . .The movie was awarded as the Best Feature Film depicting the theme of national integration. This paper attempts to explore the loss of identity, sense of alienation and rootlessness as well as the lifeless existence of partition sufferers as shown in the film through the character of Pooro and Lajo.The present study highlights the theme of women's exploitation during Partition.