Readers Write In #656: What makes Deepika Padukone’s 20 min role in ‘Jawan’ Special?

By Kakoli Bhattacharya

When was the most recent instance when a cameo in a movie completely captivated the audience’s interest? According to my recall,it happens to be Suriya as Rolex in Lokesh Kanagaraj’s gangster drama, Vikram.Aishwarya Rathore, played by Deepika Padukone in the popular movie Jawan, is the newest name to be added to this list. In a movie starring two Shah Rukh Khans, there are strong female characters who, although having less screen time, are given enough to do.Moreover, Padukone’s role cannot be termed as a cameo due to the fact that comprises two songs, incredible chemistry with the King of Romance himself, childbirth, and an emotional ending—all in the span of twenty minutes. But that is not the only thing that distinguishes her role in the movie.

Azaad asks in the climax, “Main Kaun Hoon?” and the first reply is “Maa ko Kiya Hua Wada Hoon.” This statement transports us to Hindi films from the 1970s to the 1990s, when we witnessed the hero go through a turbulent childhood and erupt in rage in an effort to avenge his mother’s tears. The mother of the hero plays a key role in the emotional core of the plot and serves as the hero’s origin story, making us root for him and cry for the oppressed motherly figure in classic commercial potboilers like Deewar, Trishul, Mother India, Disco Dancer, Ram Lakhan, Karan Arjun, Baazigar, and Soldier.  It gave Hindi cinema its iconic mothers, Nirupa Roy and Rakhee Gulzar.

However, with time, Hindi films mothers lost their importance in commercial potboilers and became more prominent in rom-coms and social dramas. Though we wept for the mothers of Rocky in Rocky aur Rani ki prem Kahani and Nakul in Badhai Ho, did we feel the same way about any of Rohit Shetty’s action films?Nonetheless, the South valued tears and did not overlook the responsibility of mothers even in an action film; actresses such as Lakshmi, Nadiya, Ramya Krishnan, Radhika Sarathkumar, and Saranya Ponvannan skillfully portrayed these emotions. Bahubali is nothing without the dominance, charisma of Shivagami and Devasena and same can be said about Shantamma in KGF whose words ring in Rocky and us everytime.

Jawan successfully revived this amma sentiment in Hindi cinema through Deepika Padukone’s powerful performance as Vikram Rathore’s wronged wife, who inspires her son Azaad to seek vindication on his father.Deepika’s role’s screen timing is irrelevant because mothers in an average commercial Hindi film are evaluated primarily based on their impact than their onscreen time. A leading lady in a film can be written off as a “love interest” or reduced to a sexy lamp, but a mother can never experience that.

Atlee has been criticised for using the women in refrigerator trope in his emotionally charged death scenes, such as those of Samantha in Theri and Nitya Menon in Mersal, irrespective of having the talent to write female characters. But what sets Deepika Padukone’s Aishwarya Rathore apart from all the other heroines in Atlee’s films is that, before facing the the gallows she is given the opportunity to defend herself against her assailants. None of the heroines in Atlee’s film, Mersal’s Aishwarya and Theri’s Mithra, had this privilege; instead, they all died defenceless in their husbands’ arms.

It was very refreshing of Atlee to not make Deepika’s character into some weepy figure who laments on her fate but as someone who despite having only few years with her son, makes her son’s childhood filled with smiles.The lullaby “Aarari Raro” is about a mother’s empowering hopes for her son rather than her tears.

Born and brought up in a prison by his mother, Azaad is able to relate to the tears of a prisoner who has been denied justice as he has seen those tears in his mother’s eyes. This enables him to see his gang of girls with the lens of empathy and not that of a saviour. Take some notes, Bigil. It wont be wrong to say that in a film filled with swag and oomph of Vikram and Azaad Rathore, it is Aishwarya Rathore who gives the emotional soul to the film.