Parched is a 2016 Indian drama film written and directed by Leena Yadav and produced by Ajay Devgan under his banner Ajay Devgn FFilms. It premiered at the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival.
Movie Details :
- Directed by : Leena Yadav
- Produced by : Ajay Devgan
- Written by : Leena Yadav
- Starring : Tannishtha Chatterjee, Radhika Apte, Surveen Chawla, Adil Hussain, Lehar Khan, Sayani Gupta
- Music by : Hitesh Sonik
- Cinematography : Russell Carpenter
- Edited by : Kevin Tent
- Production company : Ajay Devgn FFilms
Plot :
The film revolves around four women living an unwanted life in a village of north-western region of India, which still suffers from old, age-ridiculed traditions like forced child marriages and other social issues like financial difficulties, spousal and familial rape, and physically and emotionally abusive alcoholic husbands.
Rani (Tannishtha Chatterjee), who has been a widow for half of her life, is trying with all her might to get her son, Gulab (Riddhi Sen), married to a beautiful girl, Janki (Lehar Khan), from the neighboring village. Then there is Lajjo (Radhika Apte), a friend of Rani. They both are skilled and work for a local entrepreneur named Kishan (Sumeet Vyas). Lajjo is childless and wants to conceive desperately but fails. On top of this, her alcoholic husband, Manoj, batters her every night. The fourth woman is Bijli (Surveen Chawla), a local erotic dancer, who is a feast for the eyes of village men. She not just dances but fulfils inner desires of many men during dry, sensuous nights of the village.
The men of village fear the development and skill of the women and want to live the lifestyle left by their forefathers. The entwined story of these four women shows how they live in a tightly controlled world, hemmed in by tradition, but in their private spaces, they talk about love, sex, and their dreams for the future.
The twist to the story comes when Rani discovers Janki is dishonored in her village, Lajjo is tired of the brutality of her husband, and Bijli is jealous of a new girl who might replace her. This leads to a journey of freedom and finding solace in each other together.
Parched Movie Review :
Parched (2016) Movie Review By Times of India
The film addresses how there is nothing shameful about a woman’s need for sex or ownership of her body. As the village women talk about their carnal desires, you empathise. Like last week’s matinee offering Pink, you raise a toast to the director for raising some hard-hitting questions on the double standards of society. When Bijli asks, How come there are only abuses of the MC, BC variety or gaalis named only after women and none after men, you applaud. Frankly, like the film suggests, perhaps it is time to coin expletives after men too.
Full Review
Rating : 4/5
Parched (2016) Movie Review By Koimoi
Parched is a powerful women-centric drama but it falters with the underlying themes of sexuality. Also, breaking free from the shackles of tradition and society is something that stands true for Kishan’s character much more than the leading ladies.
Full Review
Rating : 2.5/5
Parched (2016) Movie Review By Rogere Bert
That Yadav chose to make “Parched” in response to these stories shows how honestly she wanted to understand their actions, unfathomable to many Western minds. And it seems that in drawing Rani, Lajjo, and Bijli as smart, articulate, skillful, successful, and sexy women, she succeeds. A viewer can fume and shake her head, but at the day’s end, the empathy demanded by a camera trained on a a woman not totally unlike yourself helps you see her as more than just a victim of tradition and misplaced machismo. She is a person with dignity, and she demands to be treated as such—even by the Western audience member.
Full Review
Rating : 3/4
Parched (2016) Movie Review By Bollywood Life
While this one is clearly a Sex And The Village that many girls might enjoy, it’s not gonna leave you with a feeling of elation as it’s more like a chick flick for the rural audience. You might like it but it won’t make you go ‘woah’! After watching Pink and having high hopes for some more of hard hitting women centric films, I was very disappointed. One time watch would be enough for this film.
Full Review
Rating : 3/5
Parched (2016) Movie Review By Mid-Day
If you were to draw a parallel, this would perhaps be the rural equivalent of Pan Nalin’s upper-class, super-urbane ‘Angry Indian Goddesses’, a terrific ensemble pic, from last year. Of course we’ve been seeing very entertaining and explosive feminist films lately (‘Pink‘ is an even more recent example). A fine sign of our times, I’d say, and if the arrow also leads to theatres, yes, it’s worth going, and supporting, for sure.
Full Review
Rating : 3/5
Trailer :
Parched (2016) Movie Review
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