Traditional Femininity vs Modern Femininity in Indian Cinema Research Paper

Traditional Femininity vs Modern Femininity in Indian Cinema - Research Paper Example The appearance of this concept is possible to connect with a reinterpretation of an old Indian myth about Goddess Durga. Exploring Asian culture, traditions, customs, and moral values is a complicated and a demanding task. Art still remains one of the most reliable sources of such information throughout centuries. Indian culture seems exotic and inaccessible to the rest of the planet, and cinema is only capable to open slightly the curtain to the Indian world. Bollywood movies can also be considered a good source of images, moral values, and cultural perceptions of the Indian nation. However, they are sometimes blamed for being too corrupt and public-oriented (Dudrah 32). Vijai Mishra states that Indian movies produced in Mumbai can be used as retransformation of the most ancient Indian epics, Mahabharata and Ramayana (128). Both works have the issue of dharma revealing, the notion which embraces responsibilities, morality, universal harmony, justice. Dharma violation has a direct influence on femininity construction, which has resulted in Indian movies of Bollywood. Corruption and violation of dharma necessarily result in adharma, which requires restoration as it bears disharmony. Following the changes of the woman image in Hindi movies, it is possible to reveal that perception of a woman has changed from a â€Å"new woman† to a â€Å"goddess†. Strange enough the heroines still support patriarchal values and stick to traditional views as traditions are essential for the Indian world perception (Stromquist 127). Until the 1970s a woman was mostly pictured regarding her relation to a man in Indian cinema. Thus, a woman was primarily a wife, a mother, and a daughter. This woman had to accept traditional values, be submissive, obedient, and able to sacrifice herself for a man. The role of â€Å"mother† in Indian films was also one of the most prominent (Erndl 3). A mother is perceived as an endless source of love, patience, and protection.