Analysis of Water
Context:
Water was written and directed by Deepa Mehta in 2005. It is the third in her elemental trilogy (following Fire and Earth). It premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, and was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Foreign Film category. Because of the controversial subject matter of her previous films, the filming of Water attracted hostile attentions. The day before filming was scheduled to begin, protesters wrecked the filming site. Mehta was forced to film in Sri Lanka instead of India as originally planned, and had to work on it under a false name (River Moon).
Content:
The film takes place in India in the 1930s, and centers around the plight of a group of widows. We are introduced to this world through the eyes of Chiuya, a seven year old girl who was sent to live as a widow when her husband died. The widows live as aesthetics to atone for the bad deeds they had supposedly done in an earlier life to incur the bad karma of losing a husband. Throughout the film, the audience sees not only the hardships the widows experience, but also the indifference of the rest of society. The film ends with Didi, a widow whose strong sense of morals conflict with her faith, saving Chiuya from the horrifying life of a widow-turned-child prostitute.
Form:
The juxtaposition between the poverty of the widows and the lush surroundings outside the walls were expressed through colors. The palate of the film was an array of brownish blues and bright greens. Music also played an important role in the mood and tone of the piece---Mehta employed not just an orchestra, but singers as well to heighten the emotions of the audience.
Analysis:
For me, the contrasts are what made this film so powerful. Water is both a symbol of femininity and also the essence of life; Water, the title of a film about women who are desexualized and debased to what they actually need to survive. For Kalyani, and later, Chiuya, it is the road to their pain and shame of prostitution. Water pulls the characters along, until the end, when Chiuya escapes over land on the train.