Peepli Live and Earth

Peepli Live and Earth

Indian partition and Indian democracy today: Two films' perspective

In the film Earth, directed by Deepa Mehtra, the politics of the Indian partition are transposed onto a narrative of romance. The film is located in an area of the land which eventually fell on the Muslim side of the divide between India and Pakistan. The film shows the world through the eyes of a little Muslim girl named Lenny Sethna. Lenny's Hindu nanny Shanta falls in love with a Muslim named Hasan. This is tantamount to a forbidden affection on par with the tale of Romeo and Juliet, given the politics of the time. On one hand, the film suggests, independence was necessary for India. However, in shaking off the colonial yoke, with the formation of two new nations in the form of India and Pakistan, many formerly friendly families were split apart.

Hindus who had lived in what was now Pakistani Muslim territory had to make their way across the border into what was to them a strange land, and Muslims living in India like Hasan had to flee. Shanta knows that she should find a Hindu like herself, and life would be easier. She is courted by Dil, or 'Ice Candy Man' as he is known. But Shanta does not love Dil and her passion lies with Hasan. Hasan is handsome, a masseur by trade, and can make exquisite oils to woo Shanta's affection.

The film Earth shows that human beings have larger hearts and points-of-views of the world than the narrow points-of-views of politics. In a mob, human beings can be bloody and violent, but individually they can be kind, understanding, and appreciate one another's differences. This is starkly depicted in a horrific image where a Muslim man is torn apart during a riot, which is counterpoised with an image of Lenny having her doll tenderly stitched back together. The domesticity and love embodied in Lenny's love for her nanny and Shanta's ability to love Hasan is not tolerated in a world that can only see ethnic conflicts in black and white. Hindus are equally barbaric -- at one point a train is shown pulling up to a station filled with bags that contain the massacred bodies of Muslim victims.

The film depicts a world that is multifaceted and complex, beyond the horrific violence that is waged between ethnic groups. Lenny is a Parsee, a member of a non-ideological Muslim sect who took a neutral stance during the partition which the girl's father compares to that of Switzerland's during World War II. There are also Sikhs in the film whose system of religious devotion combines elements of both Islam and Hinduism. At the beginning of the film, despite the presence of the British, there is a fundamental 'truce' and ability to coexist between the major religious populations. All of this changes once division of land occurs and politics take over. 'Ice Candy Man,' for example, is a very gentle man at the beginning of the film. (One of the reasons that Shanta rejects him is that she finds Hasan far more passionate). However, as the atrocities begin to mount, after Dil's sisters are murdered, he becomes fanatically anti-Muslim.

The end of the film is very romantic, and depicts the triumph of personal life over political life in the lives of the protagonists. Hasan agrees to convert to Hinduism for Shanta's sake, and takes her to safety into India. However, this solution cannot fix the ongoing carnage and hatred between Muslims and Hindus as a people, a war of ideology and weapons that is still occurring today.

In contrast to the romantic work of historical fiction Earth, the film Peepli Live, directed by Anusha Rizvi, is a black comedy about the problem of farmer suicides that actually occurs with great frequency in India today. India has a notoriously poor growing climate. Farmer suicides are extremely common. The film depicts a farmer who is lazy and has little desire to engage in his trade. Natha would rather go out drinking than toil in the fields, much to the anger of his mother. The family farm is deeply in debt and the state threatens to repossess it if something is not done -- and soon. Out of despair, Natha contemplates suicide with his brother. The story is picked up by the media. As in Earth, a personal conflict takes on political dimensions. Rival political news stations take up Natha's cause, and the different political parties associated with those stations all try to claim Natha as a representation of their agenda in the upcoming election. Eventually, Natha is kidnapped in an attempt to prevent his suicide.