top of page

By:

Shoma A. Chatterji

21 August 2024 at 4:19:40 pm

Childhood for Sale

Khilawadi, a short fiction film directed by the young and sprightly Shobhita Thakur, alumnus of the FTII, Pune, is making news wherever the film is being screened. Why? The subject of the film is shocking in its inhuman brutality. Through a brief but powerful narrative, the film tells the story of the 12-year-old Sapna who is good in studies and dreams of becoming a doctor one day. The term “Khilawadi” is a locally used word associated with the Banchada community in Western Madhya Pradesh,...

Childhood for Sale

Khilawadi, a short fiction film directed by the young and sprightly Shobhita Thakur, alumnus of the FTII, Pune, is making news wherever the film is being screened. Why? The subject of the film is shocking in its inhuman brutality. Through a brief but powerful narrative, the film tells the story of the 12-year-old Sapna who is good in studies and dreams of becoming a doctor one day. The term “Khilawadi” is a locally used word associated with the Banchada community in Western Madhya Pradesh, particularly in the Neemuch-Mandsaur region. The word is believed to have evolved within the local dialects as a descriptive label for women employed in sex work, especially those living along or near major highways. Over time, strangely, the changes in social customs, in media technology, in traditional rituals, have not affected the age-old custom of putting daughters to prostitution the minute they reach puberty. Therefore, the term “khilawadi” has become an informal, locally used word associated with the Banchada community used rather pejoratively to refer to girls or women from the community who engage in highway-based prostitution, a practice historically linked to complex socio-economic and caste-based circumstances within the region. The term carries social stigma and reflects structural inequalities faced by the Banchada community. “We could not shoot in the actual location because we were told that it would be dangerous for the team to shoot there. So, we shot several kilometers away at a different location to keep the rural spirit of the topic intact. As a woman filmmaker and an artist, I feel compelled to tell this story of unimaginable suffering and exploitation of young girls. This film is not just a reflection of their pain, but a call for social change, urging society to recognize and address this persistent injustice,” says the director. The film uses a raw, unembellished cinematic style that highlights the stark realities of their lives. It opens in the classroom of a girls’ school. We are introduced to the 12-year-old Sapna. On her way back, she waits outside the window of the community health centre in the area to watch the lady doctor at work. The lady doctor beckons her inside and asks her why she is waiting at the window. Sapna asks her whether she can become a doctor like her. But when she is asked by the teacher what she wants to become when she grows up, a giggling classmate mocks her saying, “She can only become a dhandhewali - a vulgarized term for one who sells one’s body for money.” Sapna belongs to the Banchada tribe and while her mother, a prostitute herself, plans to sell her to prostitution planning to make some money from the “nath utharna” ritual, a traditional term for the first night, the price for the first night’s customer who gets the right to strip the girl of her virginity. The doctor however, takes the help of a social worker to get a caste certificate for Sapna which will convince her mother to continue her education as she will be entitled to a scholarship for her further education. But all attempts at getting a caste certificate come to naught and while the mother sits in front of the highway for customers in vain as she is ageing, she also prepares for Sapna’s initiation into the profession. Strangely, the males in this community extract huge dowries when they get married though they are practically pimping and their wives are drawn from communities other than the Banchada community and they do not practice prostitution. The entire family then begins to live off the daughter’s earnings. When Sapna fails to get a caste certificate, she is forcibly prepared for the nuptial night and the first customer who pays Rs.10,000 is a middle-aged man. The film closes on the figure of a crying Sapna squatting on the floor after the first night, while the camera pans to focus on the bed and captures the image of an ointment Sapna’s mother gave her to prevent from the first night turning into a torture of pain. The film is aesthetically well-crafted with beautiful cinematography, good music and above everything else, brilliant piece of acting by every single actor. The film is currently on its international festival circuit, having won major awards at the FascinAsian Film Festival (Canada) and been officially selected for the Kazan International Film Festival and Festival du Film de Nancy in France. (The writer is an award-winning film scholar and author of several books.)

Knives out in legislature

Updated: Mar 21, 2025

Disha Salian

Mumbai: Death of celebrity manager Disha Salian in 2020 once again rocked the Maharashtra legislature on Thursday. While cabinet ministers Nitesh Rane and Shambhuraj Desai demanded that Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aditya Thackeray be arrested in the case, BJP MLA Amit Satam in the assembly and another BJP member Chitra Wagh in the council demanded that the report of SIT to probe Salian’s death be made public.


Incidentally, amidst repeated disruptions in both the houses, some members from the treasury benches were seen speaking in favour of Aditya Thackeray, while Shiv Sena (UBT) members like Adv Anil Parab were seen supporting the BJP members’ demand that the report of the SIT probe be made public. In addition, there were allegations and counter allegations and personal accusations among members from the treasury and opposition benches which led to heated debate on occasions.


The opposition termed the attempts from the treasury benches to link Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aditya Thackeray’s name in the case, as a ‘conspiracy’.


“I think this matter has gone to the court. We have no idea what he (Disha’s father) has said, but Aaditya Thackeray is a mature leader, a young leader. The Bharatiya Janata Party is conspiring to defame him by putting pressure on him. We don’t need to answer to this conspiracy. The court will answer,” Ambadas Danve said.


Earlier in the day, when the house gathered for the business, Minister of State for Home appraised the assembly of the status in this case. “SIT has been formed to probe in the case. Their report has not been received as yet. However, the government shall act according to directives from the court,” the minister told the house.


Another BJP minister Nitesh Rane, however, said that since Satish Salian has levelled allegations against an MVA minister, that leader be treated like a common person and that everybody should be treated equally before the law. Shiv Sena minister Shambhuraj Desai too supported the demand. “Since the allegations are grave, the person in question should be immediately arrested and the case be investigated,” he said.


Later, while speaking to media in the legislature premises, Rane asked Uddhav Thackeray to come clean on the issue. “If they say that we are politicizing the issue, Uddhav Thackeray should also tell the people why he had called, not just once but twice, to the then union minister Narayan Rane urging him to save his son?” Rane said.


He also accused the opposition of shying away from coming clean on the issue. “If they feel that we are not telling the truth, they should say so in the house. But they are shying away from doing so. Bhaskar Jadhav, who is always aggressive, was nowhere to be seen when this issue came up in the house. Sunil Prabhu too escaped the house under the pretext of a phone call. I challenge them to say that whatever I said on the issue is wrong,” Rane said.


He also said that Aditya Thackeray should resign on moral grounds till his name is cleared in the case.


BJP MLA Amit Satam demanded that the details of the SIT probe be made public so that the people would know if the probe is headed in right direction.


Interestingly, while the ruling parties were targeting the opposition in the case, senior BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar surprised all with his unexpected support to Thackerays. “I do not have any evidences in the case. But if her father has made any fresh allegations that needs to be investigated thoroughly. The assembly can discuss the issue at length tomorrow. In the meanwhile, members like Rane, who seem to have some evidences in the case should hand them over to the investigating agencies and help the probe,” he told the house.


Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Gaikwad and Sheetal Mhatre too toed the line and demanded that more and more evidences should come forth.


Similarly, when members of treasury benches were pushing for revealing the details of the probe till date to the public, Shiv Sena (UBT) member Anil Parab supported the demand. “Doing that shall conclusively prove the innocence of Aditya Thackeray,” he said.

Comments

bottom of page