Nowadays, it is undeniable that Bollywood films are not inferior to Hollywood films. Along with the increasing quality of the resulting film, the more viewers. One of the films not to be missed this year is Gangubai Kathiwadi. The film, which was released on February 25, 2022, you can enjoy on the Netflix platform.
Gangubai Kathiwadi tells the story of the struggle of an activist for the rights of Commercial Sex Workers (CSWs) in the 1960s. At the beginning of the film we will be presented with a flashback of the journey of Ganga (Alia Bhatt) an innocent girl who wants to become a Bollywood actress in Mumbai. She falls in love with a man named Ramnik (Varun Kapoor) who promises to help her dream of becoming a Bollywood actress. Unfortunately, Ramnik's sweet promise was just a trick. The innocent Ganga is instead sold to a pimp named Aunt Sheela (Seema Pahwa) in a brothel in Kamathipura.
Ganga, who feels unable to return to her home, finally accepts the fate of becoming a prostitute. Ganga also changed her name to Gangu to throw away Ganga's identity within her. He got this name from a customer who enjoyed his services as a prostitute. The customer also said that he would one day be the leader of Kamathipura. Who would have thought from the words of a customer Gangu set his ambition to become a leader in Kamathipura. Her ambition is also related to her desire to provide a better life for the 4000 female sex workers in Kamathipura.
Gangu's journey to become the leader of Kamathipura is not easy. Many obstacles must be faced, one of which is to meet the evil man who tortured her. It turns out that he is the subordinate of Rahim Lala (Ajay Devgn) a respectable man in Kamathipura. Not remaining silent, Gangu boldly demands accountability for Rahim Lala for the actions of his subordinates. Impressed by Gangu's courage to meet him, Rahim Lala finally makes Gangu his sister and becomes Gangu's main supporter to become the leader in Kamathipura.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali who is also the director, managed to portray Gangu's life very nicely with Utkarshini Vashishtha. The film adapted from the book “Mafia Queens of Mumbai” by S. Hussain Zaidi also has a vibrant visual typical of Indian films. Bright lights with colorful ornaments provide a beautiful visual to the eye typical of India's red light district at that time. Not to forget, Indian dances and songs add to the distinctiveness of the Gangubai Kathiawadi film.
Although the theme is bold and controversial, Sanjay Leela Bhansali as a director can highlight the positive side of the message to be conveyed in this film. Sanjay Leela Bhansali can also highlight the tough, brave, dignified, and unyielding Gangu character. Of course, this character looks "alive" also thanks to Alia Bhatt's skillful acting.
One thing that makes this film unique, even though it has the theme of prostitution with many prostitutes, Sanjay Leela Bhansali does not show vulgar or nudity scenes that we often find in similar films. Sanjay Leela Bhansali focuses on the message he wants to convey and the actions of Gangu's character in defending the rights of 4000 women in Kamathipura. This makes this film more comfortable to watch.
If Indonesia has Kartini as a fighter for women's emancipation, in India, Gangu figures make her one of the women's emancipation fighters. In order to defend the rights of 4000 women in Kamathipura, Gangu is willing to sacrifice many things. Apart from the controversial topics, drama and tragedy in the film, Gangubai Kathiwadi is a film not to be missed. /suara.com
