Mahotu literally means filthy rag. Directed by Vijaygiri Bava and written by Raam Mori, this short film intricately dwells over the lives of several women against a Gujarati heritage. Through the lens of the movie, the director and writer bring to the viewers the several oppression and subjugation women face at the hands of the men surrounding them. The surrounding men could be their fathers, husbands, or even sons. The title of the movie is worth pondering over. A filthy rag means a piece of torn cloth used to clean something dirty. It bears all wiped germs, muck and mire. The movie begins with an upsetting note. Watching the movie while keeping in mind the title, the viewer can understand the themes of the movie.
Synopsis
Mahotu doesn’t have a rigid plot. One action doesn’t lead to another consequence, rather the movie is an accumulation of different experiences that the women of the same house endeavour at the hands of the patriarch. The story revolves around a mother, and her two daughters Harsha and Bhaavdi. Harsha narrates the movie.
The patriarch of the house, Harsha and Bhaavdi’s father, played by Mehul Solank, is the antagonist, literally. We see him in three roles: that of a husband, a father, and a son. However, his male gender makes these identifications undetectable. Throughout the movie, he is just a misogynist hovering over the women of the household to control them and their lives. He never once regards any of the women with their real names, but uses abusive and disrespectful language for them.
The film starts with a crying and beaten Bhaavdi running away from her in-laws. She falls into the arms of her mother, unconscious. The film in these few seconds seems to convey that Bhaavdi, away from her house, is not safe. Yet, the reality is shown as we realise that Bhaavdi, Harsha and the mother aren’t even safe in their own houses. No place is free of men. The mother, played by Happy Bhavasar, does an amazing job of completely living the character of a surviving mother. Playing the character of a mother, Happy Bhavasar depicts a versatile acting as her character goes through both happiness and sadness, wins and losses, safety and fear.
The head of the house, the father and the husband petrifies her wife and her daughter. Mehul Solank’s powerful acting greatly encapsulates the male hegemony. He becomes the archetype of all the males in this society. He stops his daughter from going to school, beats his wife and treats her as a slave. He doesn’t even regard his own sick mother. His mother, the eldest of the house, is living in a trauma of the memory of her daughter being burnt alive by her husband and in-laws.
The atmosphere of the house is dreadful and suffocating. However, that completely reverses for a few minutes a week, when their neighbourhood is visited by a woman cosmetic vendor. The cosmetic vendor was the same age as the mother’s age. The cosmetic vendor assembles all the women of the neighborhood. We see women amongst women, devoid of the patriarch, and see real smiles, understanding, safety and love.
The Elements of Film and Themes
The cast of Mahotu does a stupendous job of creating a stringent and realistic atmosphere in dealing with such a sensitive topic. The cast of the movie along with Happy Bhavasar and Mehul Solank also includes Kalpna Gagdekar, Aarti Zala, Aadya Trivedi, Bhavika Pandya and Ghanshyam Patel. Vijaygiri Bava does an amazing job by including creative elements in the movie. Background music, elements of nature, the realistic Gujarati setting, and the colour contrast of the movie add to the weight of the story. Along with narrating a story about women, Vijaygiri Bava also gives us a glimpse of Gujarati heritage and culture.
The movie exclusively talks about how women and only women can understand each other and empower each other. The woman cosmetic vendor stands as a hope for Harsha’s mother. She replicates a life that Harsha, her mother, and Bhaavdi imagine. A life free of control and pain. It is also she who instils in the mother the desire to confront the rueful life she lives because of her husband. She lets her know that happiness can come first before marriage and husband. The cosmetic vendor proves to make her believe that she, too, has hope of escaping the hell.
The end of the film seems hopeful yet is still subjective for the viewers. If you want to know about Gujarati heritage along with the lives of women in the society, Mahotu should definitely be in your ‘To Watch’ list.
