Mirch masala

Description

In a British-ruled India, a subedar, an officer of the Indian Army, is sent to collect taxes in a village. Riding into the village, the subedar chances upon Sonbai, a beautiful, married woman. Abusing his power as an officer, he demands that Sonbai sleeps with him while her husband is away. To his surprise, Sonbai slaps him in full view of his soldiers before running off. Enraged and embarrassed, the subedar orders his soldiers to capture Sonbai. However, Sonbai escapes to the spice factory, where the elderly watchman locks the soldiers out to protect her. The town leader is then commanded to deliver Sonbai to the subedar and after some deliberation, the patriarchal village decides to sacrifice Sonbai. As the spice factory comes under attack, Sonbai and the female factory workers finally decide to stand up for themselves. Awards/Festivals: Best Feature Film, Hawaii International Film Festival; Moscow International Film Festival.

Runtime

118 min

Series

Subjects

Geography

Genre

Date of Publication

1986

Database

Alexander Street

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