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On This Day

25 Apr, 2021

Cinemaazi remembers Devika on her birth anniversary

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films

Chingaari (2006)

Kalpana Lajmi

Release Date2006
GenreRomance, Drama
FormatColor
LanguageHindi
Run Time155 mins
Length4458.17
Number of Reels18
Gauge35mm
Censor RatingU/A
Censor Certificate NumberCIL/2/2/2006-MUM
Certificate Date01/02/2006

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"Chingaari" is a love story, unusual and unrequired, between a Prostitute called Basanti, a Priest called Bhuwan Panda and a Postman called Chandan Mishra.

The film underlines sexuality.

The hard core professional sexuality, of prostitutes, the repressed sexuality of priests, due to religious hypocrisy, the unexpressed angst of sexuality, of the middle class postman, due to societies rigidity, which all in turn do not want to allow love in its purest form to blossom anywhere.

The film runs on several layers, it sends out a strong message starting, that all the basic amenities promised to a citizen of this country especially in rural India have not been met with yet.

"Chingaari" heightens the fact that due to lack of literacy and lack of education, villages in India even today are suppressed and exploited through religion which is misinterpreted and encourages fear and superstition, through economic exploitation of the powerful priests who control not only the morals of an entire village but even the rationing of food and water to the underprivileged poor.

The worst afflicted are the women, and especially the poorest of poor, the ravaged mutilated, humiliated and ostracized prostitute who is the silent sufferer who accepts her fate without questioning, since it has been handed down from century to century whereby not one of them has been handed down from century to century whereby not one of them has even questioned the terrible status they have been reduced to. These prostitutes have accepted this terrible exploitation as their fate.

It is the gentle idealistic educated young postman, who enters the village not as a crusader but gets sucked into the vortex of village politics. And with his honesty and sense of justice sparks off a revolution which leads to mayhem, death and yet freedom.
Freedom from the shackles of religious hypocrisy.Freedom from the shackles of sexual exploitation.Freedom for the average villager to demand his or her right to information, literacy and education.

"Chingaari" is rich and colourful, celebrating the lives of Basanti, Titli, Padmavati, Chintu, Lallan and all the characters with humour, music, dance, and magic manifesting the story, as a slice of life, which represents modern India in this century.

"Chingaari" celebrates innocence; lost childhood, maternal triumph, true love and uninhibited sensuality and sexuality.

[from the oficial press booklet]