A stunning film set in rural Gujarat in colonial times about one spirited woman's brave stand ( Sonbai- Smitha Patil ) against a village full of ' manly ' cowards, who pass themselves off in daily life as moral patriarchs ( who 'prove' their pathetic machismo by beating their wives , pulling their hair & keeping mistresses ) but are completely spineless when confronted by a mercurial Sergeant / Subedar- Naseeruddin Shah ( sent to collect taxes from the village ).
To the provincial villagers- the lowly but expansive subedar might as well be a commissioned army officer or Lord Mountbatten himself - they didn't know the difference & were completely cowed over & overawed by him , his power , his apparent sophistication and try to appease him by persuading Sonbai to service the obstinate Subedar ( esp. since she lives alone while her husband / Raj Babbar has left to the city for work ) & go to the extent of perversely implying that Sonbai would be actually selfish if she didn't sacrifice herself to the Subedar , to spare the village - a bizzare , twisted morality espoused by the outwardly dignified mukhiya ( Suresh Oberoi ) & supported by all the other 'patriarchs' including the village temple's , weasely temple priest .
The women who work with Sonbai in the village karkhana - the spice factory, also turn against her when they are under siege in the karkhana in a stand-off against the village men & the Subedars soldiers.
Under overwhelming pressure Sonbai is supported by the lone, principled ,incorruptible aging karkhana guard, Abu Mian ( Om Puri ) armed with a single rifle.
The only real MEN in the entire village apart from Abu Mian & the school master ( Benjamin Gilani ) are Sonbai and Saraswati ( Deepti Naval ) - the mukhiya's disdainful & silently enraged wife & her band of female supporters ( each more manly than their husbands )
A beautiful movie with stellar perfomances by Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Smitha Patil & Deepthi Naval. An absolute must see. One of the top 10 best Hindi films of all time. 9.5 / 10
To the provincial villagers- the lowly but expansive subedar might as well be a commissioned army officer or Lord Mountbatten himself - they didn't know the difference & were completely cowed over & overawed by him , his power , his apparent sophistication and try to appease him by persuading Sonbai to service the obstinate Subedar ( esp. since she lives alone while her husband / Raj Babbar has left to the city for work ) & go to the extent of perversely implying that Sonbai would be actually selfish if she didn't sacrifice herself to the Subedar , to spare the village - a bizzare , twisted morality espoused by the outwardly dignified mukhiya ( Suresh Oberoi ) & supported by all the other 'patriarchs' including the village temple's , weasely temple priest .
The women who work with Sonbai in the village karkhana - the spice factory, also turn against her when they are under siege in the karkhana in a stand-off against the village men & the Subedars soldiers.
Under overwhelming pressure Sonbai is supported by the lone, principled ,incorruptible aging karkhana guard, Abu Mian ( Om Puri ) armed with a single rifle.
The only real MEN in the entire village apart from Abu Mian & the school master ( Benjamin Gilani ) are Sonbai and Saraswati ( Deepti Naval ) - the mukhiya's disdainful & silently enraged wife & her band of female supporters ( each more manly than their husbands )
A beautiful movie with stellar perfomances by Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Smitha Patil & Deepthi Naval. An absolute must see. One of the top 10 best Hindi films of all time. 9.5 / 10